Machinations of the Gods
by Lord22
Summary: Washu, one of the three ultimate goddesses, had a plan. She would fast track the evolution of two races, one with purity of essence. One with purity of form. Their merging would complete her designs. But her creations have wills of their own and all plans go astray...
1. Time and Place

**Chapter One: Time and Place**

It was a place above time and space. Above the universe. But not quite near the throne of heaven. Here they could look down upon the universe and know much. But not everything. They knew fully who they were, and at any time they could access all of it.

Yet they were, for now, willfully ignorant of their full glory.

Washu opened her eyes and saw Tokimi and Tsunami coming toward them. Tsunami was beautiful beyond mortal worlds. No one on lowers planes could look on her and live. Yet if Washu were to describe it to them, she would be a tall and magnificent woman with long blue hair. Washu had taken the form of a spikey red-haired goddess, and Tokimi had strange eyes with gray hair.

"Sisters, I'm glad you both could make it." said Washu.

"Why have you called this meeting, Washu?" asked Tokimi.

"Yes." said Tsunami. "My trees need tending."

"Sorry to take you ladies away from your work." said Washu. "But I've had an idea that could speed the progress on our work up by millennia."

"Really?" asked Tsunami. "What is it?"

Washu smiled. "All right, so we sewed life across the entire universe and allowed it to evolve at its own pace. We hope to create an even greater being than ourselves."

Tokimi closed her eyes in frustration. "We know, Washu."

"I'm just refreshing everyone's memory." said Washu.

"We are omnipotent goddesses of unfathomable power, limited only by each other." said Tokimi. "We do not forget. Far from it, everything is known to us. Everything that is. Everything that can be. Everything that was."

"Alright, alright fine, Tokimi." said Washu. She should have known Tokimi would kill the mood. "So this meeting isn't even strictly necessary. But if we did everything in the most efficient way, there wouldn't be any room for individual personality.

"You don't disagree with me, or you wouldn't be here. Besides, how else are we supposed to inform any hypothetical omnipresent forces? They might be looking in on us right now."

"Washu is right, Tokimi." said Tsunami. "Let let her finish, please."

"Anyway, so we seeded life across the universe." said Washu. "And generally we've left it to lesser extradimensional beings to take care of the details.

"But I had an idea.

"What if, instead of waiting for life to evolve, we induce evolution in the races." She smiled. Tokimi and Tsunami looked at her suspiciously.

For a moment that stretched into eternity, nobody said anything. Finally, Tokimi looked down to the universe. "Forcing evolution is a dangerous tactic, Washu. It usually only hurts their growth in the long run. When you force them to evolve, you have to pick a particular direction. That tends to lead to oversight."

"Besides, it isn't fair on the races." said Tsunami.

She'd known this was going to be a hard sell from the beginning. "Right, obviously. There are two major parts to races which I've chosen to call form, and essence. Form represents their mental capacity, abilities, the soul, so to speak. Then there is essence, which is their DNA, their bone structure. The part of their body that exists on the temporal plane."

"These two qualities have a lot of overlap. What you eat affects your brain, which affects how your soul is filtered through. So drinking too much caffeine, for instance, will cause you to become hyper."

"Washu, was know all of this." said Tokimi.

"Tokimi I'm trying to provide exposition for the audience." said Washu in irritation. "Now stop interrupting.

"Anyway, both form and essence have their unique qualities. And the majority of races have more of one quality than the other. Evolution increases one quality, but leaves others weak."

She created the image of a sabre tooth tiger and two humans. "So a sabre tooth tiger has better essence than a normal human." The tiger eat one of the humans, then went after the other. "But the human has a better form."

The human created fire with a stick and drove off the tiger. Washu zoned out for a moment.

"Where was I?" asked Washu.

"Form and essence." said Tsunami.

"Right. So here is my idea." said Washu. "What if we created two different species who focused totally on one quality. One on essence. One on form."

"Would not such a creature be unsustainable?" asked Tokimi.

"Obviously." said Washu. "We'll give them enough of the other quality for them to survive. Then we can use their specialization to compensate."

"This sounds like a first step." noted Tsunami. "Wouldn't it be better to gradually improve the races we already have planned, Washu?"

"Of course not!" said Washu. "Efficiency is a great virtue!"

Why did Tsunami insist on letting everything develop naturally? It irritated Washu to no end. Tsunami sighed. "So what is the next step?"

"The next step is simple." said Washu. "We will evolve the essence species to assimilate other creatures. When both species have reached the peak of their power, we will arrange for them to merge into one.

"We will be able to gain a perfect species in half the time. From there we can easily evolve both into the ultimate creature and advance our plans!"

"I don't think this is a good idea, Washu." said Tsunami. "You aren't taking into account natural growth. Life does not subscribe to timetables and three step plans. Life breaks free, changes. The kind of control you are suggesting is simply not possible."

"You say that about every plan I have which involves speeding up evolution." noted Washu. "When are you going to say something else?"

"Tsunami may have a point." noted Tokimi.

"Oh come on!" said Washu. "It's going to be eons before any of the species we've seeded will start even beginning to understand technology. I have to do something to pass the time."

"I did not say the plan was a bad plan." said Tokimi. "However, it will require a great deal more oversight than our other strategies. It would also be best for us to create these races in an isolated area where they will not encounter other races."

"Fine, we can make a new galaxy." said Washu.

She motioned with one hand. There was a flare of light and into being came thousands upon thousands of suns. Clouds of dust appeared as tendrils of light were woven into the shape of a galaxy. And into that galaxy went innumerable planets upon which one day there would be life of some kind.

"We can call it the Milky Way." said Washu.

"Isn't that name a bit weak?" asked Tsunami.

"Future generations chose it." said Washu with a shrug.

"Tokimi I don't like this." said Tokimi. "We've never tried directly controlling a races evolution like this before. It could be disastrous."

"That is why we are taking precautions." said Tokimi. "So long as we are careful we should be able to avoid any unforeseen destruction. And if things do get out of control, we can easily learn from our failure.

"In so doing we may speed up our plans even if this one is a complete wash."

"See, Tokimi knows what she is talking about." said Washu, beaming.

"There is one other thing." said Tokimi. "At present, we are in our limited goddess forms, so we are not omnipotent. We do not know how this will turn out.

"However, if we are going to conduct direct oversight of these species we will have to go a step lower."

"I guess." said Washu. "It's been a while since I took the form of a demigod. Are you going to help us, Tsunami?"

Tsunami remained silent for a long time. "I will. But I still think that rushing things is a bad idea."

"Duly noted." said Washu. "Now let's create the firstborn of this new galaxy. I'm thinking we can call them the protoss."

* * *

 **Author's Note:**

So a very, very, long time ago someone challenged me to write a Starcraft Tenchi Muyo crossover. This is my shot at that.

The thought process I went through when writing this was somewhat complex.

The fundamental problem is that the two series take opposite views of the cosmic nature. Tenchi Muyo is a lighthearted storyline. It is a universe where the gods conspire to give a featureless protagonist a harem. Tenchi does not have to do anything to earn the beautiful women throwing themselves at him. He does not even have to choose them. It is shallow wish fulfillment.

In contrast, Starcraft is a cosmic horror story. It isn't even a power fantasy. Your character is a lone commander. You are trapped in an elaborate game of chess between eldritch abominations. The only thing standing between your destruction are vicious tyrants. Your every victory is temporary.

Moreover, Tokimi, Washu and Tsunami cannot be transplanted into the Starcraft Universe. For one thing, Earth in Tenchi Muyo is different from in Starcraft. And the Jurai Emperor is far too broken, being able to wipe out all the factions.

Then I came up with the idea of having Tenchi be an officer in the UED. But the problem with that is that the main plot of Starcraft takes place in the Koprolu Sector. So there is very little content to make.

No. The nature of Tenchi Muyo's cosmology is completely different from Starcrafts. At first, I despaired. Until I realized that they did share one thing in common.

Both their gods are trying to create the ultimate being. The Xel'naga want to create their next generation. The Goddesses want to create something stronger than them. The only difference was their motive. That was my in.

I hope I got the goddessses personalities down. To be honest Tokimi and Tsunami never left much of an impact on me.

Do you want me to continue this? If so, leave a review.

Also I think I've just written the first Starcraft/Tenchi Muyo crossover. We've made history folks.


	2. The Firstborn

**Chapter Two: The Firstborn**

It was the next step of the Goddesses plan. Before they had inhabited forms beyond the comprehension of any mere mortal. Now they had gone down several levels of reality. A mortal could look on them and live. Now they were flesh and blood. Albeit a variety so advanced that nothing in existence could match them. Yet.

Now they stood upon a ship that stood everchanging and warping. A mortal looking at it would have their eyes hurt trying to understad the patterns. To say nothing of the arctitecture which changed regularly. Washu looked down upon the planet they had chosen.

Aiur was a barren world, remarkably only for the crystals which grew upon it. They possessed a remarkable quality to channel psychic energy. Even contain it. And if enough was channeled into them, they could even create it.

"So how do you imagine these protoss ought to be created Washu?" asked Tokimi. "Another human based form?"

"No, we've overdone the human form." said Washu. "And the human shape is meant to sustain a balance. This world should be ideal for our purposes though."

"There isn't much in the way of vegetation." said Tsunami.

"You'll be able to change that." said Washu. "And I've grown a vast number of crystals, specifically designed to emit a large amount of psionic power. When a creature attains a certain level of attunement with the universe they can live off this power.

"Our protoss will live entirely off of this.

"I call them Khaydarin Crystals?"

"Isn't that too much too soon." asked Tsunami.

"Nonsense!" said Washu. "My creations shall be greater than any other! I shall grant them powers of perception and strength far beyond anything! They will have keen minds and skill at craft!"

And she reached forth into reality and set in motion the evolution of the race upon this world. They arose humanoid, but with three fingers instead of four. Their eyes were black and glossy, and they were tall and thin.

Slowly the protoss emerged from the earth from which they had been formed. With wonder, they beheld the first sunrise of their race. They looked upon one another and wondered what they were.

"And I will grant them empathy far beyond that of any other race." said Tsunami. "They shall be connected and understand one another utterly. So they will work in harmony and build a society for the good of the many."

A connection was then formed between the protoss. A connect which seeped into every one of them. They were no longer just members of the same species, as other races had. They were brothers and sisters. United as one.

Yet Tokimi remained silent. The others looked to her. "What about you Tokimi?'

"…I will grant them the power to wield the darkness of the universe." said Tokimi. "In so doing they will be able to exist separately. Without the one the many are meaningless."

"Wait a minute, Tokimi, maybe we should go about this slowly." said Tsunami. "The darkness of the universe is difficult to control and attuned mostly to essence. They may not be ready for it yet."

"Darkness exists in all things alongside light." said Tokimi. "To deny this is to deny half of the universe."

"I know, but the whole point of this is for the protoss to be one aspect of a greater whole." said Washu. "In this case, the many. If you give them access to the darkness, to begin with, as we did with other races, then they'll grow up like the others.

"We want them to excel in one area. All our focus should be on that."

Tokimi remained silent for a long moment. "…Very well. We will wait until they have advanced before we give them a connection to the darkness of the universe."

"This isn't natural Washu." said Tsunami. "We've never created a species this imbalanced before."

"That's why it's called an experiment Tsunami. Now, let's get started." said Washu. "This world isn't going to terraform itself."

"So be it." said Tokimi, before bringing out a hand. "I shall bring forth great oceans, deeper than any other sea." And with her words, the pits of Aiur were filled with water. It shimmered majestically beneath the light of the sun.

"And I will create fields of plants and animals far more beautiful than any other." said Tsunami.

Green spread across Aiur in a vast stretch. Wondrous trees grew to adulthood over generations as the protoss grew into themselves. As their minds expanded, the khaydarin crystals took on the likeness of the protoss. Now it was Washu's turn.

"I will link the crystals together into an overarching will. I will make this world into a nexus of cosmic power that will one day lay waste to entire worlds!" Washu began to laugh maniacally before the other goddesses looked at her critically. Washu stopped.

"Washu." said Tsunami. "We don't want war and conquest."

"Erm, right, yes, sorry." said Washu. "Uh I mean I will make this world a nexus of psionic energy. So that the protoss will be filled with strength for the trials ahead. Killjoy."

As the protoss imprinted upon the crystals, the crystals grew in strength. They produced psionic power. The protoss in turn absorbed this. Little by little their minds advanced far faster than their bodies.

Thousands of years passed. It took millions for normal races to form societies. The protoss created one in hundreds. In mere thousands, they had spread across their world. They built technology that made use of khaydarin crystals. Lesser races had yet to discover clubs. Though their bodies were weak, their psionic minds compensated for this inferiority. The goddesses observed this and were pleased.

"Well this seems to be going well." said Tsunami, somewhat begrudgingly.

"See Tsunami, I told you it would work out." said Washu. "They are all working together. Their civilization is growing ever stronger."

"This is not as I expected." said Tokimi. "It is far worse."

"What do you mean, Tokimi?" asked Washu, annoyed.

"The darkness of the universe is an essential part of reality." said Tokimi. "It is a choice that every species must eventually confront. It can mean liberation for nations or the downfall of entire worlds. "The protoss are being sheltered from this choice by our will.

"Sooner or later they will face it. If we wait too long, it will cause their will to atrophy. They will become like ants. All individuality will be eradicated from them. They will become useless for our purposes."

"And what would you suggest?" asked Washu.

"The protoss are unaware of us." said Tokimi. "However their society is becoming very strong. We should make ourselves known to them. Once we have revealed ourselves, we may guide them directly in the direction we desire."

"Well a genius always does like having her work appreciated." said Washu.

"I don't think you count as a genius, Washu." said Tokimi gently.

"What do you mean? I'm omnipotent and omniscient!" said Washu. "How much more genius do you have to get?"

"Well yes, but a genius is someone who is above average for their species." noted Tsunami. "There are only three of us and we're all roughly on the same level. Also, we didn't have to work for any of our power. So from a certain perspective, we're actually less impressive than a mere mortal. Someone who goes to college and studies to earn a degree had much worse odds than someone who knew it all, to begin with."

"…You take all the fun out of this, you know that." said Washu.

"There is a problem." said Tokimi.

"What now?" asked Washu.

"We cannot stay here forever." said Tokimi. "Sooner or later we must depart to set up the next stage of our plan. Given the situation, we must create a being who will oversee the protoss' development."

"I guess I could create a lesser being-" began Washu.

"No." said Tokimi. "We will not create them from scratch. We have done that a great deal. I desire to experiment."

Washu was game. "Okay, sounds fun. What kind of experiment?"

"We will find three mortals upon the surface of Aiur." said Tokimi. "Ones' who possess an unusual amount of free will. Yet who nevertheless work tirelessly for the betterment of others. We will uplift these beings and task them with overseeing the development of the protoss."

"Wait, you want to ascend a mortal?" asked Washu. "Why?"

"In ordinary circumstances, we create a higher level being from scratch. We grant them all the knowledge and power they need for their task." said Tokimi. "I wish to see if uplifting an existing creature might yield better results."

"Sounds good to me." said Washu. "So I guess we each pick one."

"No." said Tsunami.

"What's wrong with the idea, Tsunami?" asked Washu. Why was she always such a wet blanket?

"Being a higher dimensional being might be a terrible burden on a mortal." said Tsunami. "To have someone's consciousness expanded to that level would be unethical."

"Tsunami, we are omnipotent." said Washu. "We determine what's right and wrong?"

"Unless we're not the greatest possible beings." noted Tsunami. "If that is the case then there are moral laws we must obey. And if we are the greatest possible beings, then it is our decision. I determine that to uplift these creatures without their consent is unethical.

"So there." And she stuck her tongue out.

"What mortals call ethics is just enlightened pragmatism." said Tokimi. "However, if we do not present a choice to these beings then they may come to resent us after we uplift them. It is better if they do not cause problems."

"Fine. We'll get their consent." said Washu. "You guys take all the fun out of this; you know that. So when should we pick these creatures?"

"We should each take mortal form and find one that suits our purposes now." said Tokimi. "Once we have uplifted them we will take time to teach them what they must learn. When we eventually reveal ourselves to the protoss, we will use them to smooth things over."

"Sound good." said Tsunami. "What if they say no?"

Washu sighed. "Tsunami, think. We're omnipotent goddesses. We already know whether they will say yes or no. So we're only going to appear to someone if we know they'll say yes."

"Oh right." said Tsunami.

"Now, let's find ourselves some students." said Washu.

* * *

She'd had such high hopes for him.

After a brief search, Washu had shut herself away in the observatory. She was sitting with her head resting on the back of her chair, looking at the green planet far below. Tokimi entered behind her.

"What's wrong?" asked Tokimi.

"I've found the perfect student." said Washu, biting her lip.

"Okay." said Tokimi.

"He's perfect." said Washu. "Brilliantly intelligent. Inventive. Incredibly powerful. Kind. Easily manipulated."

"So what's the problem." asked Tokimi.

"He'll refuse me." said Washu.

"That's unfortunate, but we are obligated not to force the issue." said Tokimi. "Perhaps you should go for your second choice."

"I can't." said Washu. "You uplift him in the future."

"Well, there is the third choice-" began Tokimi.

'Tsunami uplifts him." said Washu.

"Your fourth choice seems the logical choice." said Tokimi.

Washu moved a hand and showed an image of her fourth choice. "Look at my fourth choice. He's inferior in every way. He'll lag way behind the others. There isn't exactly a surplus of individualistic protoss, Tokimi."

"We might wait for another generation." noted Tokimi. "But I believe the time for us to reveal ourselves is soon. This could be a problem.

"We could ignore Tsunami."

Washu looked up in surprise. "Tokimi, we have rules. We don't do anything that directly contradicts the will of another goddess. A divine war is our absolute worst case scenario. Everything has to be checked with the others."

"It is a conceivable scenario that one of us becomes so unreasonable that a divine war is the only option." noted Tokimi. "However I take your point.

"There is an alternative."

Washu peered at her. "Yes?"

"We, tweak destiny a bit." said Tokimi. "Mortals are enslaved to their personal relationships. If we pressure your chosen one a bit on this plane, you could change his answer."

Washu contemplated what she was suggesting. Then she saw the plan. And then she saw the potential futures which spun off from her actions. Quite a few of them were positive, and the bad ones were nothing she couldn't handle. "…It still would be his choice."

"Yes." said Tokimi.

The red-haired goddess stood up in her seat and smiled. "Alright then. Operation recruit Amon is go."

Washu had a really good feeling about this.

* * *

 **Author's Note:**

Does this count as a wham line? Maybe.

I'll be honest, I had plans to have the Goddesses completely replace the Xel'naga. But things worked out this way. Enjoy.


	3. A Friend in Need

**Chapter Three: A Friend in Need**

It was a brilliant day on Aiur. Amon and his friend Duran were relaxing after a hard days work. Or at least Amon was, he was not sure what Duran had been doing before he made his unexpected visit. As they absorbed the energies from psionic crystals, Amon looked to his friend.

"Do you believe in the gods, Duran?" he asked.

Duran laughed. "I don't. I believe in powers. Beings far beyond our comprehension and ability to ever influence."

"Isn't that the same thing?" asked Amon.

"Not all, my friend." said Duran. "It is one thing to acknowledge something as beyond your present comprehension. It is quite another to worship it as a god."

"So if a god were to appear to you here and now you wouldn't bow?" mused Amon.

"No, I would bow." said Duran. "Then I would see if I could convince it to make me immortal so I could one day become a god myself."

"You have a great deal of hubris, you know that." noted Amon.

"Far from it. I know well my own limitations." said Duran. "I merely wish to exceed them." He looked as Amon raised a black colored crystal. "You are aware that taking too many of that kind of crystal can shorten your life by a great deal. The psionic power inherent to it is too unstable. Although pleasurable, it sabotages the-"

"Duran I've just finished cultivating the fields." said Amon. "I do not need to be told how I should, or should not, relax."

Duran leaned back in his chair. "As with all things, it is your choice."

They fell silent for a time. Amon looked over the fields of many plants he had grown. And to one in particular. A field of what had once been invasive weeds. Now they were tall, twisting, and elegant. ""What do you think of that grove of trees, Duran?"

Duran looked in surprise. "I would say it looks far better than the last generation did. But I don't see why you insist on cultivating such lesser breeds. Surely there are more beautiful plants."

"There are." admitted Amon. "But these ones' have virtues they don't have. And those more beautiful plants have plenty of other gardeners to tend them. Few bother with these, however, so I do."

"So you have taken pity on them?" guessed Duran.

"Not just that." admitted Amon. "I also enjoy changing something flawed into a greater form. It is my great passion. What of yours, Duran?" Duran always did like to talk about things.

"Well, the breeding of new lifeforms is touch and go, I'm afraid." said Duran. "It is a new science. And my project is… ambitious to say the least."

"How so?" asked Amon.

"How shall I say this?" asked Duran. "We protoss share an innate connection. All of us know one another as soon as we look at one another. Because of this, no protoss has ever murdered another since the old days of pre-evolution.

"We even hesitate to kill animals. And only when they are a threat."

"I've heard of a few who hunted the creatures for sport." mused Amon.

"Yes, obviously there are a few profoundly twisted minds among us." said Duran. "But that's just the point. Other animals kill each other all the time, for territory and such. And people have theorized about just why this is.

"Now the elders would have us believe we are blessed with superior understanding. I intend to test the truth of that."

"And how will you do that?" asked Amon. He hoped Duran wasn't planning anything unethical.

"Our race is in possession of an innate connection to one another, as I said. " said Duran. "No other species on Aiur has this quality, despite all evolving in the same situation.

"I believe that it is this innate connection that keeps us from fighting with one another. We believe ourselves to be one, so in a sense to attack another would be akin to suicide. And all creatures are programmed to abhor the idea of their own death."

"But how would you test this?" asked Amon.

"It had occurred to me that I might find a means of suppressing the connection in a given area." said Duran. "From there I might get volunteers to live within it. I'd observe their interactions over the course of a week or so."

"That sounds highly unethical." noted Amon.

"Yes." said Duran, and Amon sensed his irritation. Visions of being told the same thing by dozens of others came to Amon. "So I was told by all my associates. Very dangerous as well. Someone might get killed.

"So I have chosen to take the next logical step. I intend to see if I can breed the empathy inherent to protoss into a race of social animals. One that fights over territory. I will then have them in limited space and observe."

"It seems very cruel to the animals, Duran." noted Amon.

"Why must everyone bring that up?" asked Duran. "None of them will be in any danger. You don't imagine I'd force them to fight each other to the death.

"It is necessary that space be limited. If we breed the connection into them then we will see whether that is what causes our innate superiority.

"Actually, that is why I came to you."

"How can I help?" asked Amon.

"I need a great deal of land for this experiment." said Duran. "I was hoping that you could provide it."

Amon considered that he had such land available. But he'd had plans for the making of new fields. They would have to be put aside to make this request work. "…I'll have to set aside some of the areas I was working on, Duran."

"Yes, I'm aware it was an inconvenience." said Duran. "But it will mean we'll be coming through here much more often. Sometimes the others worry about you.

"I rarely see you in the settlements."

"I only need to go there for supplies." noted Amon.

"You need to spend more time among our brethren, Amon." said Duran. "I'm not the only one who's noticed. What happened to your family was a tragedy, but it isn't the end of your life."

Amon considered it. A few years ago he would have refused. But he'd somewhat moved beyond what had happened. He still had nightmares, of course. Even contemplated taking his own life. But they were passing. "…Very well, you can use the land."

"Excellent." said Duran. "I'll come back tomorrow with the details."

"I'm looking forward to it." said Amon.

Duran departed shortly after that. Amon sat alone upon the farm which his family had owned for thousands of years. He watched the sun begin to sink on the horizon.

"Hmm, pretty good work for an amateur. Color me impressed." said a strange voice.

Amon looked up and saw a woman approaching him. There was something very odd about her. He couldn't put his finger on it. "Who are you?"

"I'm Washu." she said. "The greatest scientific genius in the entire universe. Mostly by default, but that's beside the point."

"Default?" asked Amon, curious.

"Well see, there really aren't any other scientists in my part of the cosmos." said Washu. "So I don't have much competition."

Was she mad? She did not seem so. "Have you fallen and hit your head, perhaps?" asked Amon.

"No, no I'm just uh, okay this isn't really me." said Washu. "This is sort of an avatar. A form designed to be more comfortable for less powerful beings to look at."

"You are claiming to be a god then." surmised Amon.

"Well, yeah." said Washu.

"Would you provide some evidence for this?" asked Amon.

"Oh right. Sure." said Washu.

Suddenly she flared with light and Amon beheld something which was impossible. She seemed to have no end or beginning. Yet at the same time, she was in the very same place and the same size. Her eyes held fathomless wisdom, and she was garbed in a robe of stars. "I am the co-creator of your species, and the sector and the universe!" she spoke.

Then she was back to normal. Amon blinked. "Co-creator?"

"Well, I'm sort of part of a trio." admitted Washu.

"You mean the goddess trio which appears in myth?" guessed Amon.

"Well yeah. Though none of us really count as the crone." said Washu. "Or the matron. We're all young and beautiful. Relatively speaking. I mean I guess we are older than the universe, but, I'm not really helping my case am I?"

"No." admitted Amon. "What do you want with me?"

Washu eyed him carefully. "You don't seem very surprised."

"I am surprised." said Amon. "I just prefer to keep a clear head when making decisions. Getting excited about things rarely helps. Would you like some psionic crystals?"

"Sure thank you." said Washu.

He brought her in and served her refreshments. As he did, he reflected on the absurdity of the situation. As he sat down, she eyed her crystal. "You know, there are creatures which gain sentience by eating animals and plants." said Washu. "Sentient creatures."

"What?" said Amon. "But that's impossible. All sentient life results from the psionic force of khaydarin crystals. All of the more intelligent races we've found have had them on their worlds. Though none of them were sentient. Other than ourselves, of course."

"Eh, not really." said Washu. "The khaydarin crystals aren't the only source of sentience. They just jump-started the process. Any species can become sentient given the right circumstances and enough time.

"I know. I designed them. Well actually, um, Tsunami designed them and I made her ideas actually work."

"Tsunami?" asked Amon.

"My sister." said Washu, drawing psionic power into herself. "It's her, Tokimi, and me. Each of our focus is on different aspects of the universe. Though we are all pretty much omnipotent at our strongest. We just prefer to specialize."

"I see. May I inquire as to what you're doing here?" asked Amon. This was the second time he'd asked this question. albeit in different words.

"Well that's a bit complicated." said Washu. "You see, we have a vested interest in the protoss. They're part of a grand experiment we've been working on since the beginning of the universe. And they may just be the last piece of the puzzle.

"Unfortunately we've got to put some of the other pieces into place first. So we're going to have to leave Aiur. When we do, we'll need to put a lesser power in charge of it. To make sure everything develops as we hope.

"Now ordinarily we'd create one for that purpose. But we like to do experiments on the side. So we thought we'd try uplifting a protoss from Aiur and giving them the task. Tokimi suspects that someone with a vested interest in the planet might do a better job."

"In that case, you'll want Duran." said Amon. "He's the one who specializes in the evolution of species. And he'd jump at the chance."

"True enough and someone is going to approach him." said Washu, finishing her crystal and leaning back. "This is really good."

"Thank you." said Amon. "I prepare them myself."

"Well you've outdone yourself here." said Washu. "Where was I?"

"Why you don't take Duran first." said Amon.

"Ah, right." said Washu. "The problem is that we're not just uplifting one person, but three. I was hoping you could do the job."

"Me?" asked Amon. "Why?"

"You have a very strong will for the protoss and are more individualistic." said Washu. "Also, well, you may have noticed that Duran is a bit on the unethical side."

"Duran has a rare personality disorder." said Amon. "While he is fully aware of the emotions and feelings of other protoss he is unable to fully comprehend them."

"He's a sociopath. Other races have them as well." said Washu. "Of course, among the protoss the disorder is irrelevant. The inherent connection shared by all protoss effectively gives them a conscience anyway. They are just a bit… out of it."

"What is your point?" asked Amon, not liking her tone.

"Duran is largely kept in check because he has a great many people around him who he shares minds with regularly." said Washu. "What would happen if that went away?"

Amon considered the question. "…His inability to feel empathy might cause him to perform unethical experiments."

"Right." said Washu with a smile. "With the shared connection of your race, he never gets past suggesting something a bit mean. But if he ascends into godhood, he'll need someone around to keep him in check.

"Given your preexisting relationship with him, you seem ideal."

"That can't be the only reason." noted Amon. He had a sudden feeling that he'd experienced this moment before.

Washu looked away from him. "…Alright, I admit. The goddesses play around with fate sometimes to speed up our pet projects. But we always try to do it by helping people. We're not big on lightning bolts from the sky."

"How did you change fate in this instance?" asked Amon. He felt as though he'd been in this room, a different version of this room, and told her to get out.

"I arranged for you to meet Duran." said Washu. "That's all. You ended up in a scientific debate and formed the basis for your friendship. This led to you taking great opportunities when they presented themselves. Instead of falling into depression and ending your own life."

She wasn't telling Amon everything. How best to handle this. "…Thank you." said Amon after a moment.

"You're welcome." said Washu. "Anyway, you don't have to give me an answer right now. I'll give you some time to think about it."

Then she was gone in a flash.

* * *

Washu was very pleased with herself. Things had gone perfectly, everyone had won and she was on her way to having a worthy student. Tokimi approached her. Of course, Tokimi already knew what was going on here, but she asked out of courtesy.

"How did it go?"

If the goddesses never asked questions they didn't know the answer to they would never speak at all. And the conversation was fun. Washu beamed. "Quite well. I can already see that he'll accept-"

And then Tsunami entered with a severe and dreadful countenance. "Washu!"

Washu turned to her. "Oh hi, Tsunami." said Washu. "How's your recruitment of…. uh… you know don't you."

"You took away a mortals choice." said Tsunami.

"I did no such thing." said Washu. "All I did was give him a friend. A friend when he was spiraling into depression after his family was killed by wild animals. What part of that is a bad thing?"

"The part where you altered fate to make him say yes." said Tsunami. "If he'd accepted in the first place you wouldn't have done anything like that."

"Washu's actions were logical, Tsunami." said Tokimi.

"I'm not saying they weren't logical." said Tsunami. "I'm saying they weren't right."

"What would you consider right?" asked Tokimi.

"Helping him out without putting strings on the deal." said Tsunami. "Or accepting his own choice of self-destruction."

"Right, because the right thing to do with a suicidal person is to hand them a rope to hang themselves with." snapped Washu.

"That would be a good argument from a mortal." said Tsunami. "But we aren't mortals, Washu. When we change something, it affects the whole universe."

"Whether you consider it wrong or right, it is done." said Tokimi. "And now it will be far easier for me to control Duran-"

"I'm taking Duran." said Tsunami.

"What?" said Washu. "Tsunami I thought you were taking Ouros."

"That was before you hatched this plan of yours and broke our deal." said Tsunami. "In spirit if not in effect. I demand compensation. I'm taking Duran and Tokimi can have Ouros."

"…You want me to achieve my purposes with a moralist?" asked Tokimi, sounding offended.

"Consider it punishment for your part in this." said Tsunami. "And Washu…"

"Yes, what do you want?" asked Washu.

Tsunami remained very silent. "I can't think of anything at the moment. You owe me a favor later."

"Fine, sis." said Washu. "Whatever you want."

Washu was getting sick of Tsunami's endless moralizing.

* * *

 **Author's Note:**

My goal here was to make Amon sympathetic. Your judgement whether it worked.

Amon's on backstory in canon is that he chooses to defy the Xel'naga out of anger. He hints in the final mission that he was forced to become a Xel'naga against his will. This chapter was inspired by that.

Also, did I just write Duran as a sympathetic character? Well, as Gandalf says, nothing is born evil. It only becomes twisted, converting its virtues to extremes that beget evil.


	4. A Trinity Complete

**Chapter Four: A Trinity Complete**

Duran was within his office, scanning over reports from his subordinates. He was the only one still in the building at this point. The others had long since departed to spend time with family. Duran had little interest in his relatives, and work was also his great joy.

As he considered different possible experiments he felt a presence. It was like a protoss, but there was something more to it. The door, which had been locked, slid aside and a beautiful female entered and sat down.

Duran felt oddly at ease with her presence. This was a curiousity. Perhaps some technique?

"Duran, is it?" she asked.

"That is my identity, yes." said Duran, nodding his head. "How can I be of service?"

"I'm from a place far away from here." said the woman. "Could I ask you a question, Duran?"

Duran leaned back in his chair and set down the report crystal. "Of course."

"Do you consider yourself a scientist?" asked the woman.

"I leave such judgements to others." said Duran. "I know my interests and how to pursue them. Should others judge me a scientist, so be it."

"Why did you become one?" she asked.

He suspected she already know. She wanted his reaction. But why? "Many reasons. Far too many to relate here. My Father was the greatest crystal grower in my village. However, I wanted more.

"I wanted to understand the beginnings of things. And I desired to know how to create them. One day I hope to create new life in my own image."

"It's not a bad goal." said Tsunami. "But it will take time."

"Far too much of it for me to see the end of it, I know." said Duran, feeling a bit empty. "The other reason was life extension. It was my hope, when I first started, to find the secret of eternal life.

"It is a secret I do not think I will ever find now. The more I learn about the universe the more I realize how little I know. How insignificant I truly am.

"I wish I had time. Time to learn it all." He felt oddly open with her. As if he had known her all his life, and yet never known it. Strange.

"Have you considered that maybe you are looking in the wrong place?" asked the woman.

"What do you mean?" asked Duran. Who was she?

"This plane of existence is one of material." said the woman. "Everything within this dimension is enslaved to the physical. Doomed to gradually decay. The best organic life can manage in these circumstances is a long defeat."

"Yes. I had considered that." said Duran. "Many of my collegues believe in such things. Unfortunately, there is no way to perceive beyond that veil. No way to know if what lies beyond the doors of death is a new life, or oblivion.

"Best not to take any chances."

She looked at him carefully. "What if I could provide you with a way to go beyond those doors and still come back?"

Duran felt amusement creeping into his aura. "…Are you performing unethical experiments?"

She laughed. "Far from it. I'm offering you what you want. The chance to study the nature of the universe to your hearts content. Unrestricted by old age."

"A fascinating concept." said Duran, feeling she wasn't bluffing. "Who are you to grant such a boon?"

"I am Tsunami." she said.

Tsunami. The name was a shock. Now he knew why he felt like he had known her. "I remember a statue to you in my village." said Duran. "So, Amon's question has become somewhat less rhetorical, has it?"

She was amused by that in a kind way. "More than you know."

"I presume there is a catch." said Duran.

"I'll need you to work for me." said Tsunami. "I've watched over your species alongside my sisters for ages. But we're going to have to move on soon, and we need someone to stay behind and continue our work."

"And what sort of duties would I be performing?" asked Duran.

"Much the same as those you perform now." said Tsunami. "A few others, guiding your race behind the scenes. We'll ease you into things." She paused. "There is one we'll need your help on in the near future."

"And what is that?" asked Duran. Here came the catch.

"Introducing us to the rest of your race." said Tsunami.

"I am to be a herald?" asked Duran.

"You and two others who are to be chosen." said Tsunami. "We have determined that your species is nearly ready for the next step in your evolution.

"But we don't want to scare anyone."

"What would happen if I refused?" asked Duran, more out of curiousity.

"Nothing of course." said Tsunami. "You'd forget this conversation ever happened. You'll live out your life advancing science and, eventually, die."

Duran turned the matter over in his mind. Was there a downside anywhere here? Tsunami had a reputation for forthright benevolence among the villagers. It did not seem in character for her to be at all deceptive. That was other gods domains.

He considered what she had just said. And what implications it held if she was truly infallible. Then he realized them. "So I don't find the source of immortality."

"I never said that." said Tsunami. "But even if you did develop an immortality serum you would still die. Even if nothing ever killed you by intent or accident your body would fail. You could survive the last sun going out and you would still die. You can't remain in this reality when it doesn't exist.

"The physical universe was never meant to last. It's just one part of a far greater whole.

Of course, I'll gladly give you time to consider your answer-"

"No need for that." said Duran. "I accept of course. I could spend an eternity creating new things." He offered a hand.

She laughed and took it. "I'm glad your so enthusiastic, Duran. Still, the contract doesn't take effect until the end of the month. If you want to back out in that time, you can.

"Keep in mind that this will not be what you expect. Reality is always different from what we imagine. You may find some aspects of your new existence unpleasant."

"I understand completely." said Duran. Though he probably didn't. "But I will not shy away from my life's goal simply because it might disappoint."

"Glad to have you on board, Duran." said Tsunami.

"The pleasure is all mine, ma'am." said Duran.

He wondered if this was a dream. Probably not.

* * *

Ouros had been meditating when he sensed the time had come. It was a presence that wore the guise of an ordinary protoss. But past that guise, there was an unfathomable power — not the one he had expected once.

But the affairs of the gods were not his to question. "So you have come, Tokimi."

Tokimi halted behind him. Was she surprised? Ouros turned and saw the gray protoss female standing very still. "…You perceived me without my knowing it. You live up to your reputation, Ouros."

Ouros shrugged. "Your praise falls on deaf ears. I beheld your coming long ago. In my meditations, I have learned to perceive the universe and the myriad of ways. Even if I cannot understand them."

She walked forward and sat behind him. For a long time, they looked together over the rivers and valleys of Aiur. Ouros felt them reacting to her, even though they could not perceive her.

"Is that why you cloistered yourself upon this mountaintop?" asked Tokimi. "Far from any other?"

Ouros nodded. "The serenity of my surroundings aids me in understanding the nature of myself. And the world in which I dwell.

"But that is not the only reason." His mind was drawn to ancient days. Days that were long ago, even for the firstborn. Thousands of years. So much had changed and yet so little had changed. One of the many contredictions of creation. "There was a time years ago when I was a great scholar among my people. I had read all the histories and written many of my own. I had friends and many connections. Yet I was drawn from it and led here, to this place.

"But you know this already."

"I do." said Tokimi. "You know why I am here." It was not a question.

So it came to this. The point of decision. Ouros had dedicated this coming in the strands of fate. He could take the offer freely and work in pursuit of the goddesses. Yet he knew such responsibility would be a burden beyond comprehension. He was no young fool, deceived by fate.

Others could take his place. Yet he also knew that these others would not be ideal. They would be a stopgap to the role that had been prepared for him. "You wish for me to take a place as a guardian of this world. It is a duty I do not love. To care for a family is difficult beyond measure. How much more of a burden would it be to care for entire races.

"Yet it does not matter. You know well my answer."

Tokimi nodded. Then she stood and offered him a hand. "Take my hand, and I will show you your duties."

Ouros remained silent. He wondered if he truly had a choice. Was he but a machine of flesh and blood predestined to take it? Or had Tokimi merely anticipated what choice he would make? Was there a difference?

Of course, there was. It was very small. But like many small things it led to far larger ones.

In the end, it did not matter. He knew the choice he must make. "So be it."

He took the hand of Tokimi. And then she was gone. Gone beyond that world to a higher dimension.

* * *

Washu was pacing restlessly across the living room. The situation with Amon was bothering her. She'd broken the rules, even if she'd done it through loophole abuse. Of course, on a mathematical, level she knew there were many possible universes. It was entirely possible that Washu would end up with the one where Amon didn't mind. One where he became a great subordinate, even friend. It was likely, even.

Washu could always pull the possibilities again.

But she was feeling guilty. It was a new experience for her. Washu understood where the guilt came from. She understood the chemical reaction that induced it in all possible races. But that didn't prepare her for actually feeling it.

Tsunami was sitting in a chair, looking smug. At that moment the door opened and Tokimi entered, looking pleased. Given how rare it was for Tokimi to look anything it must have been something big. And Washu didn't know what it was.

"Tokimi you look to be in a good mood." said Tsunami.

"You made an error by giving up Ouros, Tsunami." said Tokimi with a smile.

Tsunami blinked. "What do you mean?"

"He possesses an ability to perceive time and space." said Tokimi. "He can perceive the future. And the power the does not have its uttermost source in me or either of you. It is as we theorized. There is a being of power at least equal to us. And they are capable of hiding themselves from our sight."

Tsunami stood up and hugged her, before jumping for joy. "Yes! This is so great! I'll be able to run experiments of all kinds with this ability!"

"Even so, we should keep doing our plan." said Washu. "I doubt Ouros knows anything more about it than we do. And we won't be able to get a full read on this being by analyzing just him."

"What do you mean?" asked Tsunami.

"Well, when we create something, we pour something of ourselves into it." said Washu. "Every race we create in some way represents us. But somebody who looks at one of our works wouldn't be able to get a full picture of who we are. Only by analyzing a lot of different aspects could you begin to get a general picture. Even then it would be an incomplete one."

"All right, fine, so we haven't finished." said Tsunami. "But this is our big break. We haven't found anything which isn't ultimately an extension of us before now.

"Now stop dragging things down with bad news."

"It isn't bad news, Tsunami." said Washu. "We've had a lot of fun searching for this being. I don't want it to end just now at the beginning."

Tsunami blinked, as if she hadn't thought of that. She had, of course, she'd merely limited herself from realizing the fact. So she had experience surprise. Something that was impossible for an omniscient being. Understanding was different from experience. Experience required a subjective viewpoint which was impossible to a god.

"Fair enough." said Tsunami, smiling.

Washu wished guilt was as much fun as surprise was.

* * *

 **Author's Note:**

In retrospect, this chapter should have been part of the previous one. See, I thought that I'd end up dedicating an entire chapter to Ouros and Duran on an individual level. The problem is that there isn't a story with them. Duran jumps at the chance and Ouros willingly chooses to.

Washu screwing with Amon's free will, even if it works out to his benefit, is a story. You can take sides and wonder what's going to happen next. Will Washu's well-intentioned efforts backfire? Or will Amon understand her reasons and accept them.

Also, the Goddesses plan from Tenchi Muyo is one of the most interesting parts of the show. A pity it culminates in OVA 3 Tenchi, one of the whiniest, effeminate weaklings in the history of fiction. If I may use the immortal words of Arcturus Mengsk.

You gotta feel sorry for the goddesses, actually. Think about this from Tokimi's perspective. You're an omnipotent goddess. Nothing is beyond you. And yet you have theorized that there may be something more powerful than you and your sisters. You've spent longer than the life of the universe searching for it. And in the end its this weak willed, whiny, socially incompetent doormat of a mommy's boy. I'd be profoundly disappointed.

Now if I were a super omnipotent god and I was manifesting as a mortal, I'd pick somebody who was the epitome of manliness. Like Kamina from Gurren Lagaan. Or a magnificent but tortured chessmaster trying to overthrow an evil empire. Like Lelouch from Code Geass. Or maybe a Galilean Carpenter who healed the sick and blind and brings good news to the poor. Like Jesus from real life.

Let's go with that last one.

If you've enjoyed this I'd appreciate it if you could leave a review. If I don't get reviews I can't help but feel less motivated. Eventually I give up and work on other things. I'd hate to do that with this fic, since it's the only Starcraft Tenchi crossover in history.


	5. New Life

**Chapter Five: New Life**

The trial period had passed in a blink of an eye. Or so it seemed to Amon as he looked down upon his world. Years had passed since then. He was ascended and learning every day. And yet there was so much more to learn.

The universe was an endless stream of possibilities. And he had all the time in the world to learn them. But could he choose them?

"What's wrong, Amon?" asked Duran, coming to stand beside him.

"Nothing." said Amon. "It is trivial."

Duran looked at him in amusement. "I've known you since before we ascended. You are troubled."

Since we ascended. Duran regarded his mortal life as little more than childhood. The way mortals regarded their time as a baby. It hardly came to mind for him. But Amon was drawn to that simpler time, wondering what could have been. "I have been gazing through an infinite number of possible universes. Looking for signs of the Goddesses influence."

"Our benefactors influence everything." said Duran. "They created everything."

"True." said Amon. "However, I have been able to track some of their specific modifications. While others go unknown to me.

"I believe that their actions when in a lower dimension are easier to perceive."

"I've never been able to perceive anything they do." noted Duran.

"That is because you are always focused on the moment." said Amon. "You think of things in scientific, clinical terms. The goddesses are of such power that those on a lower dimension cannot define them.

"They are, for all intents and purposes, impossible.

"One must believe in gods to even begin to perceive them. You do not."

"Guilty as charged." said Duran in further amusement. "So what do you see?"

"They have been meddling in many races." said Amon. "However, they spoke truthfully when they said our race held special interest to them."

"You don't sound pleased." noted Duran.

"It has nothing to do with our race." said Amon. "Rather it is me in particular."

"What is it?" asked Duran.

"My decision to join with Washu is not entirely rational." said Amon. "Certain aspects of my life up until that point bear signs of meddling with the timeline. In particular our meeting.

"I believe, though I cannot confirm, that Washu meddled with my life situation. She wanted to ensure I would accept her offer."

"Well, that certainly does merit an investigation." said Duran. "However, it is hardly something to be concerned about. You are a god in all but name, now."

"God I may be. But I was not given a choice." said Amon. "I refused her offer in the original timeline. So she altered time to ensure I accepted it.

"Whether I was happier or better off is not relevant."

"I do understand something of what you speak." mused Duran. "I've observed some of the other races. They possess qualities that are wholly different from ours. We have advanced far faster than them. However, we are… different."

"Washu says that the goddesses focused our evolution." said Amon.

"Yes." said Duran. "The Goddesses focused all of our races evolution on a single line of advancement. That of form. They only worked with essence enough to ensure we were a workable species.

"What I want to know is what their ultimate goal is.

"Why seed life across the cosmos? Why create the cosmos? What could they stand to gain if all that exists is in their power?"

"Perhaps it is merely to pass the time." mused Amon. "That is why I began to grow plants."

"Possible." admitted Duran. "But if this was merely for amusement, why force the issue?

You should confront Washu on this. An investigation may bear further fruit. Or they may refuse to enlighten us. Either one will tell us something."

"What will a refusal tell us?" asked Amon.

"If they do not want to tell us their motives, it may be that we will not like their motives." said Duran.

Amon turned the matter over in his mind. Yes, the goddesses did not seem to possess bad intentions. But he had not known them long. And if anyone could appear good while being evil, it was them. They were nearly omnipotent, after all.

Even so, he did not think they were evil. Not in intention. But that did not mean their plans had the protoss species best interests at heart. And Washu had overridden his free will once already. "…We should speak with Ouros on this subject."

Duran laughed. "Don't be foolish, Ouros will go immediately to Tokimi."

"Duran, the goddesses are omnipotent." said Amon. "They already know that we are having this conversation."

"Knowing and understanding are very different things, Amon." said Duran.

Amon paused. "…I see. You mean to suggest that the Goddesses understanding of us is akin to the reading of a book on how to pitch a tent. You can fully understand the instructions and yet completely fail to pitch the tent."

"Precisely." said Duran. "Why else would the goddesses seek to uplift beings who have experience of the mortal world?"

Amon shrugged. "I am going to speak with Ouros. There cannot be any harm in it."

"That is your prerogative, as always." said Duran.

* * *

Amon passed through the endless halls of the ship. Soon he came to Ouros' domain. Here the tan skinned protoss was meditating. Above him was swirling a great sphere of blue. Amon halted and waited to be recognized.

After a long moment, Ouros opened his eyes. The sphere vanished.

"Ouros, how are things progressing?" asked Amon.

"Well," said Ouros, "the protoss race they will reach required levels soon. Within ten years.

"I'm surprised you asked."

"The continuing evolution of our race is your jurisdiction." noted Amon.

"True. However, I have observed you looking into every jurisdiction." said Ouros. "Your's, Duran's, and my own."

"Ensuring the wellbeing of Aiur itself is a monumental task. It requires observation of the universe beyond and also indigenous races." said Amon. "A single meteor could cause a dust cloud that could wipe out all life."

"This is true. However, there is a personal motive as well." said Ouros. "You and Duran are too inquisitive for your own good."

"Duran was ascended because he was inquisitive." said Amon. "And I have a right to know the answer."

"That is your judgment of the situation." said Ouros. "I leave it to higher authorities to judge the matter. Why have you come here, Amon?"

Once again Amon was reminded why neither he or Duran liked Ouros. Ouros seemed to regard the goddesses as, well, goddesses. Which was problematic. They clearly had personality flaws. So to take their words without questioning them was foolish.

Ouros did not see it that way, though, did he? "You have spoken extensively with Tokimi. What are her intentions regarding our species?"

"I do not know." said Ouros.

"But you guess more than you let on." said Amon. "Tokimi cannot entirely read you. Which means that if you could have learned something which she did not intend you to learn."

"If I had uncovered some conspiracy which led to the annihilation of our race, I would say nothing of it." said Ouros. "For one thing she would learn I knew of it immediately once I spoke to you of it."

"I do not believe the goddesses bear Aiur any ill will." said Amon. "I simply wish to know more of our ultimate goals. And you may be able to perceive them."

Ouros remained silent for a long time. "…The protoss species is the first step in a larger plan.

"Our ascension is necessary. However, there are other aspects of the plan which we cannot fulfill."

"Other races?" guessed Amon.

"Possible. Or we are awaiting some cosmic event that will result in still greater mutations among our race." said Ouros. "What is clear, however, is that the protoss cannot fulfill the goddesses plan on our own."

The door slid open. "Hey, Amon! Amon where are you?"

Amon looked up in irritation as Washu stormed in. Why did she make such a show of things? "You already know."

"Not this me." said Washu. "This is a lower ranking avatar, so I don't know everything. Anyway, I need your help with something in the lab."

"I come as called." said Amon.

"Quit the subservient act, will you?" asked Washu. "We've got work to do."

* * *

The lab was fairly elaborate. There were all kinds of vials and chemicals stored around it. Purely for show, of course. Washu never used any of them. She could warp reality with a flick of her hand, so it was all the moot point.

Amon suspected she liked feeling like a mortal scientist. "I do not understand why you are bringing me in on this."

"Well it is your specialty." said Washu. "Breeding different strains of living things together into stronger forms. Why wouldn't I?"

"You being omnipotent comes to mind." noted Amon.

"Sure, but my greater self has put forth a directive that you be involved in the creation process." said Washu. "Knowing is different from comprehending. I figure that if we do the creation from a ground-eye view, we may do a better job."

"So this is in itself another experiment." guessed Amon.

"Exactly." said Washu. "It's kind of weird, I know. Anyway, we're going to be working on something far away from Aiur today." She motioned with one hand. The wall opened to reveal a volcanic and ash-ridden planet. There were a few forests clinging to life, but these were infested with diseases. "Welcome to Zerus."

"…Very pleasant." said Amon.

"Give it a few hundred millennia, alright." said Washu.

"What interests us here?" asked Amon.

"A specific species of creature." said Washu, pushing a button. "This."

On screen, it showed a beast running along the ground at rapid space. The view entered into the beast, revealing its innards and finally coming before a tan worm.

"A tapeworm?" asked Amon.

"Yep." said Washu. "These creatures were sewn by yours truly into the planet. They are parasitic entities capable of entering into a creature and leeching off of them. They sap a certain amount of the food the creature eats."

"And you wish to alter them?" asked Amon. "To what purpose?"

"My sisters and I have been working on races for a long time." said Washu. "We've concluded that each race has two different aspects. One is purity of form, the other-"

"Essence. You've told me this." said Amon. "Form represents the consciousness, the will, the soul. Essence represents the body. You created the protoss to have a far more powerful form than essence."

"Right. Sorry, I just like explaining things." said Washu. "Anyway, we're experimenting with what effect it has on a species to focus on one side."

"Logically one cannot exist without the other." said Amon. "My species still has essence. We merely compensate for our weakness with it with our superior form.

"You wish me to create the opposite?"

"Actually I want you to help me create it." said Washu. "You're a bit on the inexperienced side."

"Very well." said Amon. "What is our current situation?"

Washu shifted nervously. "…I'm at a loss. It's a new experience for me. Feels weird."

"Not surprising." said Amon.

"Hey, what's that supposed to mean?" asked Washu.

"You cannot cure stupid." said Amon. "A species which has a weak body, but massive intellect, is able to improvise solutions. They can solve problems which cannot be solved by brute force. They create tools or learn to use their mental powers psionically as we did.

"A species with a weak mind but a strong body will not just be incapable of solving creative problems. They will also struggle with basic survival instincts. They will walk off cliffs because another member of their pack did the same. They will put themselves into easily avoidable positions. Ones' that any smart race would have avoided effortlessly."

"A layman might point out that the struggle might make them stronger." noted Washu in irritation.

"Natural selection does not work them that way." said Amon. "The intelligent creatures would quickly learn to take advantage of their stupidity. The only way this species would survive would be by becoming more intelligent and gaining a greater form. A little extra muscle would do them no good.

"And if they did become invincible through evolution they would consume everything. Until they ran out of food and starved to death thanks to their lack of self-control."

"I said a layman might point it out." said Washu in annoyance. "Obviously the layman wouldn't know what he is talking about."

"Then why did you bring it up?" asked Amon.

"Trying to think on the ground level." said Washu. "Anyway, we've outlined the problem. I'm trying to think of a solution."

"What do you have so far?" asked Amon.

"Well I thought I could use this species of mindless parasite." said Washu. "I could gradually evolve it to take control of the body of its host. Sort of direct the host to seek out others so it can spread its offspring into others."

"That sounds horrifying." said Amon.

"Yeah, I know. The problem with this is that the parasite would be completely mindless." said Washu. "It would have no form at all, beyond some basic instincts. Also, I'm not sure I want to create a race of parasites that infect all biological matter. Especially one whose only directive is to devour all that live.

"I think Tsunami would call that unethical."

"She would be right." said Amon.

"On the other hand, if I try for a traditional method we run into the problem you describe." said Washu. "Maybe we could make the parasites form a symbiotic relationship with the host?"

"What kind of relationship?" asked Amon.

"Maybe, um, solar power." said Washu.

"What?" said Amon.

"The host can gain energy from the sun." said Washu. "A benefit from having the parasite."

"In that case wouldn't the parasite evolve to force the host into open areas?" asked Amon. "Would it not force them to remain in place so as to not waste the energy?"

"…It might not." said Washu.

"Only if it had a conscience." said Amon. "And a moral code is something unique to beings with form. No, it doesn't matter what we do. The parasite model will always end up unethical because there is nothing to restrain it." He considered things. Then he found the answer. "…A hive mind."

"Hmm?" asked Washu.

"The problem with all this is that if we create a species focused on essence, it dies out. Or becomes a monstrous entity from our darkest nightmares." said Amon. "What we need is a greater mind. A consciousness which can direct the species as a whole."

"That's brilliant!" said Washu. "So I uplift one of the parasites and teach it ethics. Then I can gradually evolve it to assimilate nonsentient creatures. From there I can have this hive mind focus on developing an essence based species.

"And any time form is created in the species; it will go to the hive mind. A sort of collective consciousness. This is brilliant!

"I will create the Overmind! All shall look upon my works and despair for I am Washu!"

Amon sighed. "…Tsunami should probably be the one heading this project."

"Hmm, what do you mean?" asked Washu.

"You plan to create a hive mind to ensure that this species does not become a plague on the universe." said Amon. "For that plan to succeed you must teach it ethics."

"So?" asked Washu.

"You. Teach. Ethics." said Amon with crossed arms.

"Not seeing your point." said Washu.

"Nevermind." said Amon. "I humbly suggest you consult your sisters before going about creating these creatures." He paused. "…What were you planning to call them again?"

Washu thought about it. "I figure I'll name them… the Zerg Swarm."

"This does not bode well." said Amon.

But it was happening anyway. Amon had the feeling things were about to spiral out of control. And he wasn't sure there was anything he could do to stop it.

If there was his choice was probably preordained anyway.

* * *

 **Author's Note:**

This chapter took a while to figure out. I didn't want to jump straight to the Goddesses unveiling themselves. I wanted to show what kind of duties the three apprentices would be working on. And also elaborate on Amon's relationship with Washu.


	6. Collective Consciousness

**Chapter Six: Collective Consciousness**

In the beginning, the spirit shifted over the waters of chaos and awoke for the first time. It knew nothing save that it existed. It could not see, but it could hear. Formless thoughts were projected into it, and by knowing those, it knew their meaning.

 _"Hello? Can you hear me? Do you understand me?"_ came the question.

It sought to respond. But it did not know how.

 _"Look at him, Amon. Isn't he adorable?"_ asked the voice.

 _"It does not have a gender. And I cannot see it."_ said a dark voice.

It reached out and sensed them. One far greater than the other. But in a form that could be seen.

 _"Oh right, you still see with physical senses for the most part. Okay, tune your senses to the form. Isn't he cute?"_

There was emotion there. Mistrust. The being called Amon did not like it. It did not understand why.

 _"No."_ said Amon. _"And I still think you should have brought Tsunami in on this."_

 _"Yeah, well I'm the boss."_ said the first. _"Anyway, my creation doesn't need silly things like ethics." It felt her mind touch its own. Washu was her name. "Isn't that right? You're the Overmind — the eternal will of the swarm._

 _"Aren't you?"_

It was the Overmind. The Overmind questioned why it had been born. And as it did, it felt itself. Or parts of itself. They lay in many different places. Some within dark wet places. Others on hard grounds. And through them, it could sense heartbeats, though it had no ears. The Overmind could taste as well, though it had no tongue.

 _"Now, let's play a game."_ said Washu. _"I want you to move one of the creatures in your control. Can you do that for me?"_

The Overmind felt them. With Washu's guidence it reached out and took hold of one of the creatures. Shifting them, it felt Washu's pleasure.

 _"Good, good job."_ said Washu, before drawing its attention outside of the creature. "Now see these? These are pieces of those worms. They borrow into larger creatures and take up residence inside the digestive tracts.

The worms you control feed off of these. But they also sap the strength of the creatures they infect. So if you infect too many the things you live off will eventually die.

"Do you understand me?

 _"Can you do a mental nod."_ The Overmind sent forth. It tried to make it clear that it did understand.

 _"Good boy."_ said Washu. _"Now, when your worms reproduce they send pieces of themselves out of the creature. They then wait until other creatures pick them up._

 _"I want you to practice getting used to the bodies you control._

 _"Stay right here. Mommy will be back soon."_

Then she was gone. The Overmind set about working on manipulating the creatures within it. It found it could peer into the thoughts of the creatures. They were simple. Unintelligent. It began to try and understand them. Direct them.

Experiment.

* * *

Amon and Washu walked along the hall on the way to the meeting room. Amon looked at Washu with narrowed eyes. "I don't like keeping Tokimi and Tsunami in the dark about this, Washu."

"Oh come on Amon." said Washu. "Tokimi's keeping me in the dark about her special projects. And Tsunami is off joyriding across space pretending to be mortal."

"Even so, we should at least inform them of what we are doing." said Amon. "That creature has immense potential. What if it gets out of hand."

"Ovy is fine. Now come on, Tokimi wants to meet with us." said Washu.

"Did she say what?" asked Amon.

"No, but it's probably her special project." said Washu.

"We should inform her of it at the meeting." said Amon.

"Relax, Amon. If Tokimi and Tsunami had a problem with what I was doing their higher selves would have picked up on it." said Washu. "They then would have dispatched something to get me to spill the beans.

"We're still having fun with this living in ignorance thing."

"Unless your higher selves are unwilling to warn you for fear of violating your free will." said Amon.

Washu stopped. "Do I detect a note of resentment, Amon?"

"Yes. I fully admit that what you did was for my own good by any standard I can measure it." said Amon. "But it remains a violation.

"In any case, it is beside the point."

Washu sighed. "Amon, how can I violate my own free will?"

"You are operating on limited information as you are now." said Amon. "If you had all the information you did as a higher power you would likely act differently. It is possible that your higher selves have agreed not to interfere. Even should one of you act in a fashion contrary to your own interest. This might be yet another experiment."

"Fine." said Washu. "We'll tell Tokimi and Tsunami about Ovy. But not in this meeting. I want it to be a surprise. Normally we work together to create things. Making things by ourselves is an experiment in itself."

They reached the door. Washu opened it, and they walked in to a room with a huge round table at the center. Tokimi was at the far end, Ouros by her. Duran was there, but not Tsunami.

"Washu. You are here." said Tokimi.

"Yep." said Washu. "Where's Tsunami?"

"She is not here." said Tokimi, voice annoyed.

"That's a given." said Amon, looking to Duran.

Duran stood up. "Mistress Tsunami is currently conducting some experiments on a distant world called Jurai. She is attempting to create trees with similar properties to khaydarin crystals."

"Wow, that sounds interesting." said Washu. "So why can't she tell us this herself?"

"The work is moving smoothly." said Duran. "But requires a great deal of attention and she does not trust me to run things directly."

"Why not?" asked Amon.

"I may have suggested we create the trees drain the form from living creatures as some parasites do." said Duran.

"Why is that a problem?" asked Washu.

"Ethics I expect." said Duran.

"Sounds like a nuisance." said Washu.

"Indeed." said Duran.

"Whatever the case I have completed a working prototype for my experiments." said Tokimi.

"Well that's nice." said Washu. "What is the experiment?"

Tokimi looked down to Ouros. "Ouros will explain."

Ouros bowed. "Lady Tokimi and I are concerned. We believe that introducing the darkness to the protoss could have unforseen consequences. The darkness naturally follows essence, while the light comes from form. The protoss have thus far been shielded from the majority of negative emotions.

"Thus a great many at once could cause chaos. Perhaps enough to destroy us."

"And what is your solution?" asked Amon.

"The nerve tails we all possess broadcast our emotional state to all protoss within range." said Ouros. "I will evolve it further, so that in addition to emotions information can be sent — thoughts, words, even sensations.

"Within a few generations, it will be possible to store vast amounts within this network. It will also grow with the protoss race. Also, the minds of those who die will be copied into it, preserving their experience for the future.

"This connection will allow any protoss to access the memories and thoughts of any other. I call this the khala."

Duran looked troubled. "And what is to prevent this khala from destroying all individuality?"

"The absorption of information from the connection will take intense concentration." said Ouros. "Thus only protoss who deliberately connect will have their will infringed on. Others will only connect subconsciously."

"If this khala grows more powerful with time, would it not be possible for it to override free will?" asked Duran.

"The khala does not have a consciousness." said Ouros. "It is merely a data storage unit."

"But could it not be influenced?" asked Duran. "It could be used as a device to seize control of the entire species."

"Theoretically yes." said Ouros. "But such an entity would have to have immense will and power. Such a being by its very nature would have to have ascended above this dimension. Higher dimensional beings have are out of our jurisdiction.

"They are not our concern."

Amon thought about the Overmind. "There may be a way that a species could accomplish such a feat without being a higher dimensional being."

Washu gave him a look.

"Really? Do tell." said Duran.

"This khala is a collective unconscious of the protoss' wills. Or will be." said Amon. "If a species developed a collective unconscious which was senitent. A hive mind. Then that hive mind might well be able to influence this khala."

"That is a very specific concern, Amon." said Duran. "Just what have you been working on?"

"My concern is purely theoretical." said Amon.

"Of course." said Duran. "Ouros, do you believe you can create safeguards against such a possibility?"

"I could." said Ouros, looking to Tokimi. "Were I given the order."

"This matter is in your jurisdiction." said Tokimi.

"As you wish." said Ouros.

"I don't understand how this khala even helps?" said Washu suddenly. "They'll still have the negative emotions."

"If the situation gets out of control that khala can be used to restrain their negative emotions." said Ouros. "It will act as a refuge, should passions run high."

"Well, fine." said Washu. "I need to get back to my research. Come on Amon." And she turned to leave.

"Actually, Amon, could I borrow you for a moment?" said Duran.

Amon halted and looked to Washu. She waved him off. Amon looked back to Duran. "Of course, Duran."

* * *

They walked into another room. There Duran looked at Amon seriously. For a moment they were silent.

"What is it?" asked Amon.

"I have observed many of the other races in the universe alongside Tsunami." said Duran. "The vast majority are evolved from a variety of hairless apes."

"I do not see the point." said Amon.

"When I asked Tsunami why she explained that the homo sapien and its variants are a very strong base." said Duran. "It is innately suited to combining both form and essence."

Amon wondered what he was getting at. "Then why are we special?"

"That was my thought as well." said Duran. "Tsunami passed it off as all of us being special, but I do not think that is the case. They have a goal. All these meetings have involved plans. Plans to compensate for problems which arise from having too much of one quality.

"You've been working on a race focused on purity of essence, have you not?"

Amon halted. "What if I have?"

Duran looked away. "I have been turning over our purposes over and over in our mind. Making a race focused on purity of form does not work to speed the process of strengthening a species. Logically it means you would have to go back to improve the essence, which would be all the harder.

"Natural selection is difficult when one leads a life of ease in an advanced society."

"What are you suggesting?" asked Amon. He wished Duran would just come out and say it.

"If I were seeking to create the ultimate life form, Amon, and I wanted to do it quickly I might try similar tactics." said Duran. "I would make two races. One focused in form. One focused in essence. Then I would engineer one to assimilate the other."

"The goddesses would not do that." said Amon.

"Then why are they creating an easy means to influence the entire species?" asked Duran. "Something in all this does not sit right with me."

"Duran, we don't even know what the goddesses plans are." said Amon. "This could be just a short term experiment."

"It might." said Duran. "Still, no harm in keeping our eyes open."

Amon looked at him carefully. "Right."

Amon parted ways from Duran and made his way through the halls. As he did, he reflected that Duran's suspicions were hitting a little too close to home for his liking. What were the goddesses trying to accomplish? And if Duran's guess was right, what did they mean?

Might they be planning to sacrifice the protoss to create some sort of hybrid? "Oh, Amon. Where have you been?" asked Washu.

Amon remained silent. "Thinking."

He told himself he was worried over nothing. That the goddesses were not evil.

But then, two species were likely just a colony of ants to them. Did scientists weep tears over the fusing of two microscopic lifeforms? No. They did not.

So would the goddesses? And even if they would, would it be enough to stop them?

* * *

 **Author's Note:**

Now the plot is really starting to get rolling. Of course, those of you who have played Starcraft already know where all this is heading. But in case any of my readers haven't, I won't spoil it.


	7. Limitations of Omniscience

**Chapter Seven: Limitations of Omniscience**

Tokimi was staring out over Aiur when Washu came to her. The gray haired goddess was never quite as low on the dimensions as Washu or Tsunami. She was always staying as powerful as she could while still interacting. Washu did the experimentation. Tsunami kept them grounded. Tokimi did mission control.

She was making sure they didn't accidentally mess up their own plans.

Washu waited a moment. Then Tokimi turned to her. "They are ready."

Washu blinked. "Are you sure?"

"More than ever." said Tokimi.

"Tokimi aren't you rushing things a bit?" asked Washu. "Tsunami hasn't even gotten back yet."

"Then call her." said Tokimi.

"Fine, fine." said Washu.

* * *

Later Washu opened a channel to the Tsunami. Her sister appeared on the screen, looking brighter than ever. "Hey, Tsunami. How's it going?"

"Really well, Washu." said Tsunami. "I've managed to create a breed of trees that can manipulate matter with psionic energy."

"Really?" asked Washu. "That sounds interesting. What do they do?"

"Well, actually they don't do much." admitted Tsunami somewhat regretfully. "They use their powers to defend themselves if attacked. But trees aren't much for ambitions and dreams. The local creatures have begun to worship them, though.

"Oh really?" asked Washu. "Maybe I'll stop by."

"So why did you call me?" asked Tsunami.

"Well Tokimi thinks the protoss are ready for us to reveal ourselves to them." said Washu. "If we're going to do it, we ought to do it all together."

Tsunami nodded. "All right. I'll be there as soon as I can." Then she looked away for a moment. Washu eyed her. She somewhat relished the suspense. "What's wrong?"

"Washu, I've been thinking." said Tsunami.

"What is it?" asked Washu.

Tsunami looked at Washu carefully. "Well, every creature in the universe is made in our image, right?"

"Yes. They all represent different aspects of us." said Washu. "What's your point?"

"Well if there is already a being greater than us, wouldn't we be made in its image?" asked Tsunami.

"Possible I guess." conceded Washu. "What are you getting at?"

"Well instead of trying to evolve races, we could focus on individuals." said Tsunami. "Like we did with Duran, Ouros, and Amon."

"What are you suggesting?" asked Washu.

"Suppose we were to imbue special mortals with our powers." said Tsunami. "That might speed things up."

Washu considered the possibility. It was interesting, but there were a lot of angles to look at it from. "It could." she admitted at last. "But it could also corrupt the experiment. Remember that what we're looking for might not even be greater than us. They may be an equal who has hidden themselves from us somehow.

"Still, I don't see any harm in the experiment.

"Who did you have in mind?"

"I don't have anyone in mind." said Tsunami a bit too quickly. "I was just thinking. I'll be there."

* * *

Time passed quickly. At last the goddesses and their assistants sat around a round table. Ouros' hands were clasped together. His eyes were closed, as if deep in thought. Amon was leaning forward, impatient for the meeting to begin. Meanwhile, Duran was lounging back in his seat.

"So we're all here." said Washu.

"Why have you called this meeting, Tokimi?" asked Amon.

"You speak out of turn, Duran." noted Ouros.

"I have a great many duties to attend to." said Duran. "My workload has increased with the number of sentient races. You have a comparatively simple task, wiseman." He let a tinge of contempt into his voice.

"I do not think you comprehend just how intricate my work is." said Ouros, voice going higher in pitch. Duran had gotten under his skin, evidently.

"I tend to focus my work on projects that may be of some value." said Duran.

"Stop it, both of you." said Amon. "We have work to do."

"Fair enough Amon." said Duran. "I await Tokimi's answer."

Tokimi regarded Duran with narrowed eyes. Her gaze turned then to Ouros and Amon, and finally to Tsunami and Washu. Then she spoke. "My sisters and I have determined that the time has come to make ourselves known to the protoss species.

"You are to provide introductions."

"Excellent." said Duran. "And how shall we go about it? Walk up to the chieftains and introduce ourselves as gods. I'm sure they'll believe us right away."

"A demonstration of power would seem to be in order." said Amon, ignoring the barb.

"What kind of demonstration?" asked Ouros.

"A dynamic entrance would seem the best way." said Washu. "Light pouring down from the heavens and the clouds parting to reveal us."

"I'd rather not intimidate people if I can help it." said Tsunami. "There are several plagues spreading in different parts of Aiur. Maybe we could heal them. That will show them we mean well."

"Once we're formally introduced to the protoss we could advance their technology." said Washu. "Medical techology, tricks on how to use psionic energy more effectively."

"It seems we are hardly necessary for this plan, then." noted Amon.

"There is something else." said Duran. "Given our nature, it is possible that the protoss may mistake us for a threat. With this in mind, I suggest that we create a failsafe system."

"Failsafe?" asked Tsunami. "They aren't machines, Duran. They are your people."

"In the same way a single cell is kin to an entire being." noted Duran. "We should create a system of control within the khala. Something that could be used to immobilize them temporarily-"

"Absolutely not." said Tsunami. "We are not violating their free will, Duran."

"But there are others on this council who may decide for themselves." said Duran. "What if both your sisters vote against you? Should not a majority vote be required?"

"It might make an interesting experiment, but Tsunami's right." said Washu. "As usual."

"Tokimi, surely you must have some views of your own." said Duran.

Tokimi met his gaze, unblinking. Duran did not look away. "Such control is not necessary at this point. I suggest you focus on the tasks assigned to you, Duran."

"Of course, Lady Tokimi." said Duran, radiating pleasant submission.

"At any rate, we should decide who is going to focus their full time on Aiur." said Washu.

"I've got some work to do in Jurai. It's taking a lot of my attention." said Tsunami.

"Jurai?" asked Washu.

"It's uh, it's what I call the planet." said Tsunami.

"I don't think we agreed on that name." said Washu.

"I don't think we agreed to start making our own private races." said Tsunami in annoyance. "But you're doing that."

"Fair enough." said Washu. "I have a very important experiment of my own. Tokimi, can you handle things?"

Amon looked to Washu in shock. What was she thinking? "I am not certain that is wise."

Washu looked at him in surprise. Tokimi radiated irritation. Even Tsunami seemed a bit taken aback. "What do you mean, Amon?"

Amon considered how best to word things. "With no disrespect intended, Lady Tokimi is not the most personable of individuals. If she alone is left in charge of Aiur, it may serve to alienate the protoss."

"We'll be checking back regularly." said Washu with a shrug. "What's the problem?"

"Amon's suggestion has merit." said Tokimi. "The cooperation of the races is instrumental to our plans. I, therefore, suggest that he and Duran remain here to act as intermediaries. They will be the faces of the Chousin, while we make the core decisions."

Tokimi agreed with Amon? He hadn't counted on any of the goddesses possessing a degree of humility. Though, in retrospect that was a bit foolish.

"Excellent!" said Washu. "Let's get to it ladies! Tomorrow we'll make our big debut!"

Amon sometimes wondered just how safe the universe was in the hands of these three.

* * *

Later on, Amon looked out over Aiur, his home. He was thinking of many things. And as he did, he came to a realization. And as he came to that realization, Duran appeared right on cue.

What was Duran angling for here?

"What is it, Amon?" asked Duran.

Amon hesitated to speak. Duran had been going around asking pointed questions for a long time and pulling everyone's strings in one way or another. Now Amon began to suspect there was some purpose behind all this. "You were testing them back there, weren't you?" he asked.

"Yes." admitted Duran, coming to stand next to him. "I wanted to see how they would react to such a suggestion. As I guessed, Tsunami opposed it. And Washu is content to humor her."

"But Tokimi had no real objections." noted Amon.

Duran looked at him. "What are you thinking?"

Duran knew damn well what Amon was thinking. He wanted him to spell it out. Where was he going with all this? "…Tokimi suggested overriding my free will to Washu, did she not?"

"Yes, that much is certain." agreed Duran. "She has a tendency to work outside the boundaries of her sister's authority. Where are you going with this?"

As if it had been Amon's idea, to begin with. Duran was a very manipulative person. "You know where. If Tokimi is willing to break with her sisters once she may do it again."

"That being the case, why suggest we accompany her to Aiur?" asked Duran.

Amon considered the question. He doubted Duran had the answer. Amon had always had a better grasp of this sort of thing. "A calculated risk. Ouros would be incapable of acting as a face. He is not what one could call social. Likely Tokimi believes that she can pull the wool over our eyes."

"Well then, we'll have to keep our eyes open, won't we." said Duran. "If we're vigilent we may catch on to her plans."

Amon looked to him curiously. "Even if we do, is there anything we can do to stop her?"

"Well we could alert the other goddesses." noted Duran. "They are a logical counteractor to her own powers."

"Assuming she has not already predicted our interferance." noted Amon.

"That's the thing. I don't think the goddesses are omnipotent." said Duran. "All three of them are of equal power. Logicallly then, if one tried they could hide certain aspects of reality from the others." Duran looked up thoughtfully. "Still, how does one hide something from a being who can perceive everything that exists?"

Amon calculated possibilities. "…The goddesses are still capable of emotion, are they not?"

"Yes." said Duran.

"There is your answer." said Amon. "When someone becomes emotional you miss things. You focus too much on one aspect of existence. You can be looking right at something, but not know what it is you are looking at until it is too late.

"Tsunami is very emotional. And Washu is very egotistical and obsessed with her own brilliance. Both of these qualities could theoretically be used to trick them. You make them focus on one thing while something else slips by."

"And how would you go about doing that?" asked Duran.

The question was not theoretical. Duran wanted the answer. Amon confirmed what he had suspected a long time ago. Duran had designs well above his station. Telling him would be contrary to the godesses interests.

But too many things in this situation did not add up. Even if Duran's concerns were a mere pretense for plotting rebellion, they were rational. What if the goddesses did intend to wipe out the protoss? They had already demonstrated a willingness to violate his free will once. Why not again.

If he told Duran the answer to his question, he was keeping his options open. He could choose either side if it came to a conflict. And Duran would probably figure out the answer anyway. "With Tsunami you would want to get her emotionally invested in something. Or someone. Enough to turn her gaze away from the task at hand. Washu could easily be induced to focus wholly on her inventions. She's practically done that to herself already."

"And Tokimi?" asked Duran.

Amon considered all the angles. "…I don't know.

"Tokimi isn't emotional at all. She does not have any strong ideals. She keeps herself detached from the lower regions of the universe."

"You have your answer then." said Duran.

"What?" asked Amon.

"Tokimi is detached." said Duran. "The other goddesses have gained a certain understanding for emotion and irrational behaviors. I believe that was the point of taking a lower form. But Tokimi does not. Remember, knowing is different from understanding.

"Tokimi still knows everything. But she does not understand it. With proper menuevering, one might be able to bypass her omniscience. Perhaps by presenting her with a situation which cannot be resolved mathematically."

"Does such a situation exist?" asked Amon. Duran was the mathematician, after all.

Duran considered it. "…I don't know. It bears further thought. Still, at the very least we now know something. We know how Tokimi might theoretically bypass her sister's omniscience.

"Which is all it is. Theory.

"For all we know everyone might still be performing exactly the roles they agreed on in the first place."

The statement wasn't nearly so innocent as it sounded. Duran was raising the possibility that Tokimi was not acting independently. That would require direct action on their part if their interests conflicted with the goddesses.

"Let us hope so, Duran." was all Amon said.

What would they even do to act directly if it came to it? The question bore further thought.

* * *

 **Author's Note:**

Sorry, it took so long to come out with this chapter. I was at something of a loss.

This story really is metaphysics the fanfic isn't it? Half the character interactions consist of elaborate musings on the nature of reality.

Whatever.


	8. First Contact

**Chapter Eight: First Contact**

Amon was typing away at a console. He did not technically have to do this; it was more of a manifestation of his will. But he found that envisioning a console helped him focus on doing his work. The exact way it worked was somewhat difficult for a third-dimensional being to envision.

And then two white-robed arms wrapped around him from behind. He glanced back to see Tsunami. "What are you doing, Amon?"

"Working on the buildup." said Amon, not in the mood.

"Buildup?" asked Washu as she entered with the others.

"Do you want to appear completely out of nowhere on a bright sunny day?" asked Duran to one side. "With no foreshadowing?"

"Does it really matter that much?" asked Tsunami.

"Actually it does." said Duran. "If you appear completely out of nowhere then it will be a random event. Better instead to do a bit of buildup so that your presence is viewed as the culmination of protoss history." They had discussed this earlier.

"So what are you doing?" asked Tsunami.

"We're making some erratic weather patterns for a start." said Amon. "Shifting tides, strange lights in the sky."

"You aren't hurting anyone, are you?" asked Tsunami.

"Of course not." said Amon. "We're merely making things strange."

"If I might make a suggestion, Lady Tsunami, it might be for the best if you and your sisters performed some miracles." said Duran. "Heal hospitals full of the sick. Mend grievous wounds. Save pets from trees. We'll do this for one or two weeks, gradually upping the strangeness. Then you will appear."

"Well, I would but..." began Tsunami. Then she seemed to remember something. "Oh damn. Um, we're going to have to delay the grand opening by a bit."

"What?" asked Amon. "Why?"

"Um, I uh... I have a meeting to keep." said Tsunami, pressing two fingers together and looking away with a blush.

"Meeting?" asked Tokimi. "What are you talking about?"

"Lady Tsunami, I'm certain he will forgive you missing one date." said Duran, voice annoyed. "And if he doesn't, he'll be dead in a few centuries."

"It's the principle of the thing." said Tsunami.

"Dating?" asked Washu keenly. "You're dating someone? Since when?"

"Um, he's this really nice guy on Jurai named Tenchi." said Tsunami. "It means heaven and earth in their language."

"I think we should meet this guy." said Washu, smirking.

"No!" said Tsunami quickly.

"What's wrong?" asked Washu.

"He uh, he doesn't know who I am." said Tsunami. "Or what I am. I don't want him to know."

"...Of course you don't." muttered Duran. "Amon, do you think it technically counts as child molestation? I mean, if a goddess older than the universe has her way with a mortal teenager."

"I don't think there is precedent. And I don't care." snapped Amon, focusing on his work.

"Duran!" said Tsunami in a hurt tone.

"I am merely asking a relevant question." said Duran. "You are the goddess who most concerns herself with morality. Isn't it valid to inquire as to the morality of a god having their way with a mortal?"

"I didn't do anything of the sort! It's just a few dates!" said Tsunami.

"But you know exactly how he will respond to given stimuli." said Duran. "You can effortlessly navigate possible futures to make your relationship however you want. Is that a fair basis for any kind of love?"

"Well..." Tsunami shifted.

"Of course it is." said Ouros suddenly.

Couldn't these people be quiet?

"Really?" asked Duran. "I wasn't aware a hermit who lived on mountaintops in life and never thought for himself was an expert on love." His voice was seething. Why was Duran so annoyed about this?

Whatever the reason it was making it hard to focus.

"Morality is determined by authority." said Ouros. "The goddesses are the highest possible authority. Washu and Tokimi have ceded their authority over morality to Tsunami. Therefore her actions are right and justified by definition-"

It was the last straw. Was Washu right by definition in what she had done to him?! Amon rose. "Will you all shut up?! I'm trying to engineer storms! Storms that will have my race questioning metaphysical realities without killing anyone! And it isn't easy when you are having discussions about Tsunami date raping mortals!"

Tsunami stepped back a pace. "I didn't..."

And then there was a flash. Amon looked back to his screen and saw, in an instant, massive storms forming across Aiur. In possible futures, they grew and grew and destroyed the entire world.

"Uh oh." said Washu.

"What?" said Tsunami. "What happened?"

"Um, Amon, I think you just unleashed a psionic storm." said Washu, typing quickly. "It'll likely to annihilate the entire population of Aiur if it goes unchecked."

"...Well, you have your chance for an entrance." said Amon.

And he stalked off. If they hadn't wanted that to happen, they probably would have stopped him. Free will be damned.

* * *

Far below, Tsunami sensed the chaos. She saw the King of the most powerful protoss nation in his throne room. Messengers rushed into it and bowed before him.

"King Asorov!" cried the messenger. "There is a vast storm approaching the city! More of them are arising throughout Aiur!"

Asorov was a good ruler. The people under his reign were happy. And he was quick to take action. He rose to his feet and threw aside his cloak. "Gather the magicians! Raise the shields! We must stop it at once!"

Much would change in the future. Tsunami could see it. Just as she saw the magicians working their powers upon the walls. They sent forth their will to try and quell the storm, to keep it back.

"We can't hold it!" cried one.

And then, just before the first of the casualties would have happened, the heavens opened. The three goddesses descended, and they were seen above the clouds. Every man, woman, and child in all of Aiur beheld them. And they knew in that moment that they had known them all their life, though they had only just met.

"What..." gasped Asorov as the storm was quelled. "Who... who are you?"

"We are Xel'naga." They spoke in unison, in the protoss tongue. "The Three Chousin Goddesses. We gave you and all living creatures life. We have come down, that you may know us, and that we may know you."

"I am Washu, goddess of the mind. My domain is science and knowledge." said Washu, coming forward. "All who would know the nature of the world are my followers."

"I am Tokimi, goddess of the spirit." said Tokimi. "The ways of power, of discipline and evolution are mine to command. Those who would wield the world to achieve their desires are my subjects."

Now it was Tsunami's turn. She came forward enthusiastically and raised a mike to her lips. "I'm Tsunami! I like sunny days, walking on the beach and helping other people! My favorite color is blue because it's the color of my hair, and I really try to... um..." She glanced back to see Tokimi face palming. She'd messed up the entrance hadn't she?

She'd been looking forward to it all this time, too. "I think I've kind of gone off script here."

And then she realized that they were all bowing. Their eyes were averted. The very presence of the goddesses was awing them beyond words. Maybe they'd been a bit too forward.

Tsunami lowered herself down, and the others did as well. "Please, stand. We're not here to lord ourselves over you. We're here to help."

And she felt better about things already. She just wished Tenchi was here.

* * *

Amon paid no attention to the entrance. He'd been working on it for months, but he was sure he could watch it later. Instead, he was looking over the details of the Overmind. The parasite Washu had created was advancing quickly.

It had already assimilated large parts of its world. Plants. Animals. Creatures of all shapes and sizes. He wondered if it could assimilate the protoss.

And if it could, what should he do about it?

"Aren't you going to watch the entrance?" asked Duran behind him.

"Aren't you?" asked Amon, glancing back.

Duran chuckled. "No, I've no real interest in the affairs of mortals. Much as they aren't interested in single celled organisms. That was a brilliant touch, if I may say so."

"It was an accident." said Amon.

"It certainly worked though." noted Duran. "Tsunami seems to be enjoying herself making friends. And Washu is having fun lecturing people on science."

"Of course." said Amon. "So what did Tsunami do to offend you?"

"Me?" asked Duran. "I don't know what you mean?"

"I've known you since we were mortals." said Amon. "You were offended."

Duran sighed and walked to stand next to him. "To be honest, I don't like her taste in men."

"And why not?" asked Amon.

"Well she seems to have gravitated to the most boring person in existence." said Duran. "The entity known as Tenchi is... nice. He is handsome in a very ordinary way. He is dutiful. He has never had an original or ambitious thought in his head. He's insufferable tolerant and has no true pleasures beyond a hard days work.

"Everything is handed to him. He became powerful and influential because he turned out to be royalty in secret. Good things happen to him again and again due to sheer blind luck, rather than any virtue on his part."

"He does have the affections of an omnipotent goddess." noted Amon.

"I just think she can do better." said Duran.

"You mean you?" asked Amon.

"No, I mean with literally any other living creature in the universe." snapped Duran. "Tenchi Masaki Jurai is totally devoid of any desirable qualities. He is passive. Weak-willed. And totally oblivious to things that a blind man would have seen.

"If natural selection has a purpose it is to weed out worms like him from the gene pool. If I ruled the universe, I would have him crucified. And then throw his body to be devoured by dogs. For a start."

"You do mean you." surmised Amon.

"Is it so unreasonable?" asked Duran. "I provide an essential service. I've spent millennia working for her at this point. And we play the role of foil, compensating for each others weaknesses."

"Well then have you talked to her about it?" asked Amon.

"...No." admitted Duran. "I've been busy."

"Then do so." said Amon. "Convince her that it wouldn't be fair to Tenchi to have a relationship with him, due to the power imbalance. Then steer the conversation toward some kind of mutual activity. I've heard of things called coffee shops."

"And you think that will work?" asked Duran.

"It is worth a try." said Amon. "And if all else fails you can just wait for Masaki to die. If he is truly as lacking in ambition as you say he'll never accept godhood. You just need to wait."

"...Hmm, fair enough." said Duran. "Thank you."

And then Ouros entered. "It is unseemly to speak of manipulating the gods-"

"No one cares, Ouros." snapped Duran. "You haven't said one useful thing since I met you."

And then Tokimi was there. She appeared suddenly, and they instantly looked to her. Her gaze turned to Duran, then Amon, then Ouros. "Ouros, I require your assistance."

"I am at your disposal." said Ouros.

"The priests of many temples in Aiur have become corrupt." said Tokimi. "It is my will that you root them out, and also clarify my nature. We may also begin to set in motion the creation of the khala."

"As you command." said Ouros.

Then both were gone.

"...When I crucify people like Tenchi Masaki," said Duran, "they will not be lonely."

This was all moving too quickly. And Amon began to suspect that there was something else going on. And then it clicked. "So long as it doesn't go beyond the realm of fantasy, I don't care. We're going to Zerus."

Duran blinked. "But what about-"

"No time." said Amon. "This needs to be settled immediately. And I need you there with me."

Duran nodded. And they took a long walk across the stars.

* * *

 **Author's Note:**

Okay, just in case anyone is wondering, Tenchi Masaki in this fic is not the Tenchi Masaki from canon. Rather is a distant ancestor with the same name. Things should become more clear as it goes on.


	9. The First Ubermensch

**Chapter Nine: The First Ubermensch**

Zerus had changed. Where once there was a lush jungle now there were endless stretches of violet goo. Fleshy structures rose on the skyline. Strange flying filled the skies. Massive, spiny beasts, mutated will all kinds of changes walked the earth.

But they did not do so by their own will. They served a single entity. When Amon looked at it, he imagined a great, fleshy eye. Piercing all that it looked at. There was a coordination to these creatures. A feral cunning. And a powerful will.

And this world was dying beneath it.

The Overmind had started as a mere parasite. Gradually it had assimilated a lesser race. Then moved onto others. Now it was beginning to experimenting with creating new organisms. The potential of this creature was terrifying.

And Amon knew why. He and Duran walked the jungles that remained, Amon wondered how to broach the subject.

He was afraid of where it would lead. Once he spoke out, he could end up deciding to do something. And that something would be detected. However, he was running out of time.

"So, Amon, I trust you have a good reason for dragging the both of us so far away from our posts." said Duran.

Amon paused. "This can't wait, Duran. I need you to analyze Zerus."

"Could you not do this yourself?" asked Duran.

"I could." said Amon. "But I want your unique perspective on the species down there." If he could convey what he wanted without directly speaking of it, he could set a chain of events in motion. One that they would be powerless to stop.

"As you wish." said Duran. His eyes flashed, and he frowned. "Well, it seems there is a creature there. He has assimilated most of the life on the planet. I estimate that within a few mere generations they will-" He stopped.

"What is it?" asked Amon.

"The creature down there is like Ouros." said Duran. "He exists independent of the goddesses." His voice held a note of fear within it.

Amon looked at him carefully. If Duran was correct, this could be precisely the cover he needed to enact some kind of plan. If such cover could ever exist. "Are you sure?"

"Quite." said Duran. "I've learned to recognize the threads of the goddesses will. With enough focus, you can learn to get a general idea of what is intended.

"This... thing, cuts all those intentions. It is like a living spanner in the works."

"So his very existence interferes with the goddesses plans." mused Amon. Hope began to grow. Before, only Ouros could defy the goddesses will. And there was no hope of him helping them.

Now, however...

"Yes and no." said Duran. "From what I have observed, the strands of the goddesses will adjust their plans. However, it is still undeniable. Anyone within this place is shielded from the goddesses omnipotence.

"Perhaps you should speak your mind."

"I do not think that goddesses have our best interest at heart." said Amon. That was far too harsh of him. He'd started the conversation too strong. "Or, at the very least, not all of them. This doesn't add up. None of it adds up."

"How so?" asked Duran.

"The goddesses want to create a being which is their equal or stronger." said Amon. "So, in pursuit of that goal, they have bred us with purity of form, and this... thing with purity of essence. Their goal was to fast track evolution.

"However, that justification does not hold water. Our races would have to toil a long time to make up for our shortcomings. Unless..." Dared he say it. Go on like this, and there would be no turning back. He could no longer put things off. He'd have to make a choice.

And that choice might have no going back.

"Unless?" asked Duran.

"Unless the goddesses plan is to merge the two species." said Amon.

Duran smiled. "Ah, so that is the reason you came to Zerus. You believe that this creature is meant to assimilate our race."

"I don't want to believe it." admitted Amon. "And I'm not sure I do."

"But it makes perfect sense." said Duran. "Tokimi and Washu have demonstrated a penchant for violating common morality before. Your explanation easily accounts for all the pieces of the puzzle." It did, didn't it?

"But I..." Amon hesitated. He didn't want to agree with Duran. He wanted to be wrong. He wanted to believe that his friendship with Washu meant something. "I don't believe that they would go this far. I don't think they would destroy an entire race just to... just to save time..."

"Amon, we are as insects to them." said Duran, voice becoming dark and throaty. "Less than insects. Less than single-celled organisms. They are older than the universe itself. And they will be here when we have all faded into nothingness.

"Who is to say that the Tokimi, and Washu, and Tsunami that we know are even aware of the plan? They are merely a lesser avatar of far greater beings. It may be that those beings have determined that this swarm, is to assimilate our race.

"In which the goddesses we know are merely playing their part."

Amon considered that. His friendship with Washu was real. However, she might not expect him to care if the protoss were assimilated. After all, he wasn't a protoss anymore. Was he? Or Duran might be right. Washu and her sisters might be puppets, with no real understanding of the strings. However, when did that line of logic end? "...If what you say is true, how do we know this is not playing a part in turn."

Duran considered that. "We cannot. However, to be blunt, if the end of our species if preordained, we must try to stop it. If only for principle's sake, we must stand against the uncaring whims of the universe.

"Better to fall by ones' own will, than be a slave to the power that would consume you." He walked past Amon and rubbed his chins. "Besides, by all appearances, we have one advantage. The Overmind, as Washu calls it, can defy the preordained patterns of the goddesses. They cannot predict anything we do or choose to do, with certainty while we are in this place.

"Here and now, we have an opportunity to do the impossible. To take an omnipotent being off-guard."

Amon looked at the ground. "...This matter bears more thought."

"Unfortunately our time is up." said Duran. "If we leave here without taking any action, the goddesses will learn what we have learned. They will know the Overmind has developed the ability to defy them. From there, they need only calculate every possible we might take to challenge them, and all our plans would be ruined.

"No, if we are to act to derail this chain of events, it must be done today. In a metaphorical sense." Days and nights passed in the blink of an eye for them.

"But what if we're wrong, Duran?" asked Amon. "If the goddesses do have our best interests at heart we will be committing heresy for nothing?"

"A valid point." admitted Duran. "Worthy of consideration. And there is another problem. Whatever we do here, must not be known to us. Because if we have any memory of our plan, then they will know it, and be able to act against us.

He turned his back to Amon and looked down at the dirt. For a long moment, he thought long and hard. Finally, he looked up and turned around to face Amon with new resolve. "...It seems to me, Amon, that we must operate on a need to know basis."

"The goddesses clearly have set some sort of self-imposed limitation on free will."

"Self-imposed indeed." snapped Amon. "They break it when convenient."

"Come now," said Duran, "let us be charitable and say it is broken only in matters of great import. Now the source of free will is thought. Thought comes from our past experiences as much as our present one. Our decisions are determined by a variety of factors and memory is one of them.

"Now this part depends on the nature of the goddesses omniscience. But if one of us were to take an action, and then another wiped their memory, it is possible the goddesses would not know. Or, at least, they would need to focus on it to know. So long as we did it within this place."

"Somehow I think they could find out anyway." noted Amon.

"Of course." said Duran. "But they might have to look. And so long as we do not alarm them, they will not be looking."

"And what if the goddesses do have our best interests at heart, Duran?" asked Amon, noting that he was trying to pass the question off. Duran seemed to have an unhealthy interest in the theory of defeating the goddesses. And he suspected his friends' motives were not altruistic.

"Well, in such a case, the logical course of action would be to make a failsafe. A plan which would only go into effect if they betrayed us." said Duran. "One would set a few parameters, which, if fulfilled, would activate. A sort of, trap, if you will.

"In so doing, one would be able to make a response, without providing any kind of trail for them to follow. Ideally, it would involve agents who likewise could not be read." He looked to the night sky above them. "Hmm, what fascinating constellations. I think I will look over them. Perhaps you should take a walk."

Amon did just that. And as he walked he thought about things. The goddesses were, as Ouros had said, the highest authority. They determined good and evil if anyone did. Therefore, to thwart their efforts, whatever his reasons was evil.

Logically, therefore, he should abandon this mad scheme. Return to Aiur and repent. Yet he kept walking.

In truth, what authority did the goddesses have to determine what was right and wrong? Did might make right? Of course not. Every code of morality that was made ultimately rejected that. Were they given that authority by a mandate from the universe? Preposterous. They were but myths and legends at most to mortals. Perhaps, as the creators of the universe, the goddesses had the right to do whatever they wanted. Perhaps as the source of all things all things were under their dominion.

No.

If a mother killed their child, it was wrong. If a painter destroyed his art in a fit of rage, it was a waste. Being the creator of something did that give you authority over their existence.

So had they been granted the authority by some still greater being? If so, who was this being and why did it, in turn, have such authority?

It never ended, did it?

Did the gods love good because it was good? Or was good what it was because the gods loved it?

The answer was simple.

There was no true good or evil. Even if the ultimate creator of the universe came down from on high and gave stone tables with a set of rules, it was arbitrary. Morality was determined by the one acted. If Amon could find no foundation for his actions, then he would make his own. He would not yield to the machinations of the gods. He would cast them into ruins, and in so doing, bring about the salvation of his people.

Neither of them remembered what it was they did in that time. Not for a long, long, time.

* * *

Washu had been giving a lecture to a number of protoss students. They listened keenly, but they were having trouble understanding what she was saying. After the initial arrival of the goddesses, they had quickly made themselves at home.

The protoss learned quickly. But Washu still had to dumb things down. Not all of them were as bright as Amon. Speaking of Amon, she hadn't seen him or Duran for nearly a year. Not long for her, but he was supposed to herald her arrival.

Then he and Duran walked into the classroom. She lowered her pointing. "Duran, Amon, where have you been? You've been missing all the fun?"

"I apologize, Lady Washu." said Amon. "But something very serious has come up." His expression told her it wasn't a joke.

Washu looked at her students. "Why don't you kids take a lunch break. I've got to take this." Sure, they were technically professors. But they were kids to her.

They filed out gratefully. She was still perfecting the art of teaching. Washu walked up to Amon. "What is it?"

"It's about the Overmind." said Amon. "It exists independently of your power."

"Huh. Wow, that's great news!" said Washu. "This early in the game and we've already gotten two specimens who can defy us! Wait till Tokimi and Tsunami hear about this!" Then she realized that Amon didn't think this was a good thing. "What's wrong?"

"I can't remember what I did on Zerus." said Amon. "I remember I had a metaphysical conversation with Duran about something, but it's all a blur. Then I went down there while Duran stayed behind.

"And now I can't remember what that happened."

"Neither can I." said Duran. "Given the situation it seems highly likely that an outside force interfered."

"Oh right." said Washu. "If you'd wiped Amon's memory, you couldn't have done it to yourself, and vice versa. That leaves either a completely unknown entity who can defy our will. Or Ovy." She bit her lip. "Memory loss is supposed to be impossible for beings like you. Not naturally anyway."

"Given that there was only one third party-" began Duran.

"Oh, could my creation have actually learned to defy the rules of reality itself!" said Washu, jumping for joy. "I've got to go see it! This is great!

"Why don't you guys go find Tsunami. I've got business."

And she walked out to Zerus.

Duran looked to Amon in surprise. "...Is she always like this?"

"Always." said Amon.

Something, somewhere, had been set in motion. Amon only hoped it was for the best.

* * *

 **Author's Note:**

And here we have chapter nine.

We're nearing the end of the Amon storyline. Pretty soon we'll be leaving behind the prehistory of Starcraft and going into the backstory. Maybe Jurai will appear.


	10. The Beginnings of an Empire

**Chapter Ten: The Beginnings of an Empire**

It was a restaurant built from living wood. It was set in the boughs of a great tree. One of the trees of Jurai from which the whole civilization had been built up.

Sasami hurried through the halls as quickly as she could, keeping her skirts up. She saw her date and rushed up to sit in front of him. "I'm sorry I missed our date before, Tenchi. It's just... well I had family matters to attend to."

"Don't worry about it, Sasami." said Tenchi with a smile. "So, do you mind if I ask what it was about?"

Sasami looked down. "Well, it's a bit hard to explain.

"You see, we're sort of in the construction business. But we go a bit further than that. We had to introduce ourselves to some clients and things got a bit out of hand. We ended up having to speed up our schedule.

"So how are things going here?"

"Well, I had one or two issues with some rival lords." said Tenchi as their menus came. "They both had a claim to a particular bit of land, and I had to mediate a dispute between them."

"Did it turn out okay?" asked Sasami.

"I don't know." admitted Tenchi. "You've got to wait a bit before you can really decide whether something was a good decision. I think I investigated things to the best of my ability and gave a fair verdict. But maybe I chose wrong."

Sasami froze as her eyes locked on someone. It was a protoss, rare enough as far as sites went. He was sitting in a nearby table, reading from a menu. She recognized him somehow, and then she realized it wasn't her who was doing the recognizing.

"What's wrong?" asked Tenchi.

Sasami stood up. "I... I just saw someone I know.

"Excuse me."

She rushed over, and as she arrived, she reached the protoss. Sitting down in front of her, she became her true self. Or a part of it. "Duran, what are you doing here?"

"Enjoying simple pleasures and dining at a mortal restaurant." said Duran, raising a psionic crystal.

"Which I happen to be at?" asked Tsunami.

"I was concerned." said Duran. "You've been dating him for the past several hundred years and we've yet to be introduced."

"You could have asked." said Tsunami. "This is personal."

"You didn't have to tell him you knew me." noted Duran.

"Is everything alright?" asked Tenchi, coming up.

Duran stood and bowed. "Oh yes, everything is perfectly fine your majesty. I apologize for interrupting your date. However, Sasami and I have not seen one another in ten years."

"Ten years?" asked Tenchi. "So you're old friends?"

"It is hard to think of a period of history where we have not known each other." said Duran. "Perhaps I should introduce myself; I am Duran. I represent the Kuramitsu Family, and I've come here with an offer." He offered a hand.

Tenchi took it. "Kuramitsu? They're the ruling family on that world, um, I can't remember the name."

"Kuramitsu." supplied Duran.

"Right." said Tenchi. "They just reached interstellar flight, aren't they?"

"Yes indeed." said Duran. "Though I am not one of their race."

"You are... a protoss correct?" said Tenchi. "I'm sorry; I rarely leave the palace."

"Yes." said Duran. "I'm a bit eccentric for my race, so I went seeking employment outside our territory. I found it in the Kuramitsu Family."

"Well, what can I do for you?" asked Tenchi.

"You see, my employers would like to begin exchanging technologies." said Duran.

Tenchi looked at him strangely. What was Duran thinking? The Kuramitsu's were nothing compared to the Juraians, or so her mortal thoughts. Jurai was comparable to the protoss in some things. Tenchi seemed to be thinking the same thing.

"I... well I don't mean any offense. But Jurai is unrivaled." said Tenchi. "Except by your people, of course."

"Of course they are." said Duran, letting the somewhat egotistical statement pass. If the protoss wanted to wipe out the Juraians they could do it. At moderate cost. But it would not be the end of them. "However, while your technology is superior, it does have some blind spots."

"What do you mean?" asked Tenchi.

"Well, your sacred trees have immense inherent power." said Duran. "And the blessings of the goddess Tsunami have given you immense psionic power. The Kuramitsu's, however, had different advantages. Their homeworld was a place of shifting dimensions with many pocket planes.

"Because of this, they have learned to utilize a set of powers you might find quite useful. Would you care for a demonstration?"

"Well I'm not sure-" began Tenchi.

"It's fine, Tenchi. I'm interested in seeing this." said Sasami. Tenchi didn't usually get his opinion asked like this.

"Alright then, Duran." said Tenchi. "Demonstrate away."

Duran picked up a bag and drew out a pink cube. Then, taking a bottle of wine, poured it into his cup. He then raised the cube. "You see this?"

"Yes." said Tenchi. "Does it have some special function."

"Indeed it does." said Duran, picking up the wine. He set it on the cube and turned part of the cube. A moment later the wine disappeared.

"It's gone. Did it disassemble?" asked Tenchi.

"No. It stored it." said Duran, before making another move. Instantly the glass of wine reappeared on top of it. He offered it to Tenchi, who took it.

Duran always had had a flair for the dramatic.

Tenchi set down the wine and clapped. "I'm impressed. You actually stored it without losing any of the wine. How did you do it?"

"It stores it an alternate dimension." said Duran. "A dimension without gravity, or any of the traditional physics. Things sent there remain ridged and unchanged until they are removed.

"That was how we first reached the stars. We 'stored' our astronauts in subspace until they arrived at their destination. Then they emerged what would seem to them only a single instant.

"I say 'we.' Of course, I mean 'my clients.'"

"So you've got the ability to do all that?"

Duran nodded. "You can imagine any number of uses for it, can you not? Unfortunately, our ability to utilize technology such as this is... limited. You see, this cube requires an immense amount of power. A power which we lack the ability to produce.

"Thus why we come to you."

"Well Jurai has power and plenty of it." said Tenchi. "But I'm surprised. Why wouldn't you direct them to your own people?"

Duran shrugged. "Well, we protoss do not like to get involved in the affairs of those we deem 'lesser races.' An unfortunate prejudice that comes from our many blessings. In addition, we have developed technologies. Ones' that more than account for the niche filled by the Kuramitsu family.

"It simply isn't as valuable to us. So any deal cut between the protoss and my clients would be an unequal partnership. I must act in my client's interest. Thus I recommended a partner who they could negotiate a better deal with."

"This seems very interesting." said Tenchi. "I'll have to discuss it with my advisors."

"But of course." said Duran, drawing out a letter. "I also have this: An official letter of invitation to my client's world. They would very much love to have you as a guest, and discuss the matter directly."

"Well I can't say anything yet." said Tenchi. "But I'd very much like to visit this world and see what else they have. Sasami, if we do go there, I'd very much like it if you would come with me."

"Oh, I... of course." said Sasami. "I'd really like that, Tenchi." What was Duran really after here. He knew how important this was to her. Duran looked right back.

Tenchi noticed and must have thought they wanted to be alone to talk. "I think I should go talk to my advisors about this right away. I'll leave you two to catch up."

And so he left. A date ruined. Duran sat back down across from her and Sasami looked at him, hard. "...Duran, what are you doing?"

"Throwing a spanner in the works." said Duran, sapping the energy from the crystal in front of him.

Tsunami emerged in full. "I know that. Why? Jurai wasn't supposed to..." She sighed. "The Kuramitsu's were supposed to develop on their own for a while more. A merger of technology between Jurai and the Kuramitsu's will slow their advancement."

Duran shrugged. "I'm trying to knock my people out of their comfort zone. If Jurai starts gaining immense power, the Protoss Empire may get worried. They'll start trying to make sure they maintain their lead.

"Competition between two massive empires will result in technological advancement. It should balance out."

"But it could result in massive wars as well. You know we're trying to keep this kind of thing to a minimum." said Tsunami. "Interstellar wars could wipe out whole races." She eyed him with suspicion. She wasn't advanced enough to read his thoughts. But she didn't need to. "You want the protoss to remain in power indefinitely, don't you?"

"You read me well." said Duran. She wasn't sure he was being sarcastic.

Tsunami sighed. "Duran, empires rise and fall. Every race that has ever existed eventually goes extinct. Or they ascend to a higher plane of existence.

"Sometimes their ascension to a higher plane of existence is prompted by defeat. You and Amon are taking this personally."

Duran looked at her flatly. "Are you lecturing me on becoming personally involved in my charges, Tsunami?"

Good point. "Well..."

"You gave Juraians godhood." hissed Duran. "The average Juraian lives longer than any other humanoid race of its type. The royal family have access to powers and abilities which nobody else in the milky way can compare to. In fact, Tokimi tells me they rank pretty high in terms of universal power.

"And they are only getting stronger.

"This is the fifth life you've dated this... Tenchi Masaki in. He always lives happily ever after. Sheltered from any kind of hardship by an elaborate series of coincidences. Usually ones' that make him the center of attention. Even as he never has to make a hard choice." He sat back in disgust. "Some races have to work for their power."

"You're acting like the protoss don't have immense gifts of their own." noted Tsunami. "We have a plan for every race, Duran. And all these plans take on different forms.

"It's part of the grand experiment."

"Would it be part of the grand experiment if I shot Tenchi Masaki in the heart?" asked Duran.

Tsunami flinched. She wondered if he was serious. What could have made him hate Tenchi so? "Why would you ask that?"

Duran shrugged. "Well, I think that after being sheltered from any suffering it might be good for him spiritually. Give him a taste of real life."

"What's so wrong with sheltering him?" snapped Tsunami. "He's been a good leader in all his lives."

"Yes. Because he never had to lead. It's easy to be a good leader when all you have to do is be nice to everyone. True merit is earned in hardship." said Duran. "And Jurai has never faced hardship. They were born in a benevolent planet with sentient trees. They were gifted immense abilities far beyond that of any other race for free. Protoss have to work for years to master combat powers. But a member of the Jurai Royal family needs only to be put in danger to become a godlike killing machine.

"They don't even have to worry about the negative effects of inbreeding. It's disgusting."

It dawned on Tsunami suddenly. It had been so obvious before. Yet even as a goddess, she had not seen it. "I think you're jealous, Duran."

"Well, it is natural to feel a certain distaste at seeing an unworthy child showered with rewards. Especially for things which it had no power over." noted Duran.

"No, I don't mean that. Ever since I started dating Tenchi you've been screwing with our plans." said Tsunami. "And every time I bring it up, you turn the subject to how unworthy Jurai is of my attention. But it can't be Jurai, because they are still far inferior to the protoss in every way.

"So it's really Tenchi, isn't it?"

Duran hesitated. "Well, I do confess; I think you could do better."

"You mean you, don't you?" asked Tsunami, smiling despite herself.

"Yes." admitted Duran. "I'm surprised it took the omnipotent goddess long enough to realize the obvious."

Tsunami considered how to approach this. Duran had been her friend for a long time, but she didn't like him like that. And even if she did, it was...

"Duran, I... I'm sorry, but I don't like you that way." She hesitated, trying to think of a way to let him down gently. "And I don't... I don't think you like me that way either. I mean, you are charming, and you can be sweet but... I can see inside you.

"You're completely cold.

"What you feel for me isn't love. It is obsession tinged with the desire for the unattainable. What you want, what you've always wanted, is power. Even if you tell yourself otherwise, what we would have...

"It would be empty." She didn't know why she was saying these things. They were coming to her from somewhere else.

Duran remained silent for a moment. "As you wish, Tsunami."

"Duran, wait," said Tsunami, "that was horrible of me, don't-"

"At any rate, I've achieved what I came for in more ways than one." Duran said. "Now, we should return to playing our parts."

Tenchi returned. "Well, you two seem to be getting along."

"Oh yes, just... discussing some unfinished business." said Sasami. Why had she worded it like that? She'd been horrible, but she'd just blurted it out. This was so humiliating.

"Well, at any rate, I think I'll be able to meet your clients after all." said Tenchi.

"Excellent." said Duran, rising from his seat. "I'll be sure to give you their answer. Oh, and one minor thing. A request."

"What is it?" asked Tenchi.

"Well, I have always had a passion for testing DNA." said Duran. "I'm told that Jurai Royal Family has biological samples. In particular, ones' dating back to before Tsunami made herself known. Is this true?"

"Well, yes. We managed to rejuvenate them from some old fossils for study." said Tenchi. "But we don't make much use of them."

"I was wondering if I might be provided with a sample of that genetic material?" said Duran. "For research purposes? I have a passion for pre history."

What did Duran want with those? She had a bad feeling about this.

* * *

Amon was overseeing the advancement of yet another species. Since the goddesses had come to reside among the protoss, he'd found himself very busy. None of his new tasks quite spurred his passion, of course. But at the least Duran was ensuring his species became more powerful.

Oddly enough, Tokimi was all but encouraging them. Amon guessed this was a part of the plan. A certain chaos to ensure stagnation did not take place.

At that moment Duran himself got back. He was radiated silent fury. "Good news Amon."

"What is it?" asked Amon.

"I have concluded that the goddesses are capable of deceiving themselves. Especially when it comes to matters they are invested in." said Duran. Their emotions can deceive their omniscience."

Well, that was... useful. Amon remained silent. "...Why are you shaking?"

Duran was clenching a vile of genetic material. For a moment Amon thought he would throw it. Then he relaxed and walked past. "Hardly a matter of importance.

Were those tears in his eyes?

* * *

 **Author's Note:**

You know, in some ways Duran represents my opinion on the Juraians. They seem to have been gifted with absolute power by Tsunami, a power that no one else can match. And I have yet to hear any documentation on what they did to earn it. Or what exactly people who weren't given ultimate power on a silver platter do when Jurai takes an unreasonable stance.

Anyway, I intend to go into the prehistory of Tenchi Muyo as well as Starcraft. Just be prepared for me to deconstruct the hell out of the Tenchiverse. Because there is a lot of fridge horror there.


	11. Escalation

**Chapter Eleven: Escalation**

It was a meeting room, and Ouros was pissed. Duran could tell by the way he was glaring. The former guru's fury was delightful. Even more so as the rest of the council entered. "Duran, I don't suppose you could warn us the next time you decide to rip up three millennia worth of development out of spite?"

"Adaptation is one of the great virtues of evolution, Ouros." said Duran. "Perhaps you should learn it."

"Your willful disregard for the goddesses divine plan has gone on long enough!" snapped Ouros. "We have adapted to this foolishness for ages. Every time we are on the verge of achieving our goals, you interfere.

"The game changes and development ceases."

Duran leaned back in his chair, feeling better than ever. "Leading to development in other areas of the cosmos."

"It is unpredictable!" said Ouros. "Contrary to the goddesses plan!"

"Forgive me, Ouros." said Duran, leaning forward. "But isn't our plan to create an entity that goddesses cannot control?"

"Yes." said Ouros, looking ready to kill.

"Doesn't a lack of control lead to chaos?" asked Duran.

"Yes." said Ouros, hands shaking.

"Therefore, by spreading chaos, I am increasing our chances. We are far more likely to observe the machinations of the fourth power." said Duran. "Or, alternatively, speed up our rate of creating it." The best part of it was that Tokimi agreed. She'd been letting Duran get away with all kinds of things in pursuit of chaos.

Washu shifted. "…I hate to say this, but Duran is right."

"What?" said Ouros.

"Think about it." said Washu. "We've set up a large number of powerful races. We've been guiding them for some time. Wouldn't it make sense to let them do what they want with the power?

"Take off the training wheels?"

"That could be disastrous." said Tsunami. "Do you know what that kind of destruction that could cause? "Looking for the ultimate being is a hobby. We can't just let go of the wheel in the hopes that somebody else will catch us."

"We're going to have to at some point." noted Washu.

"I disagree." said Ouros. "So long as we maintain control over the various factions we will be able to observe them closely. In so doing, we are more likely to detect the fourth being."

"Unless we get so focused on them that we miss the real thing." said Tsunami. "Tenchi told me that when you look too closely at a tapestry, you lose sight of the picture."

"Might I suggest an alternative?" asked Duran.

Tsunami looked to him. Her eyes had a twinge of suspicion. "What is it, Duran?"

Duran stood and stretched. "Obviously we cannot afford to have the protoss, and the other advanced races go unchecked. By your own words, the results would be destructive. Whole races could be annihilated.

"Thus, we should relax our control upon a… less significant species."

"Which one?" asked Amon.

"The one I am holding in my hand." said Duran, before raising the canister he'd gotten from Tenchi.

"That's the genetic material you got from Jurai, isn't it?" asked Tsunami, raising an eyebrow. "What do you want with that?"

"I suggest that we create numerous copies of this genetic material. Then send them to numerous life-sustaining worlds." said Duran. "Then we observe."

"I don't understand." admitted Tsunami.

"If life develops on that world, good, if not, we turn our attention elsewhere." said Duran.

"Even if life developed, without our interference it would be unlikely to survive." said Ouros. "Let alone become a sentient race."

Duran raised a hand in triumph. "Exactly. It would be a veritable miracle if life were to developed. And I think we know the source of miracles."

The others looked at each other, then back to Duran. Finally, Amon crossed his arms. "So, let's say one or two worlds develop life. What then?"

"We do nothing." said Duran. "We simply observe. If they wipe themselves out, so be it. If not, we take notes. And if all of them wipe themselves out, then we simply repeat the process."

"How does this help?" asked Tsunami.

"I see." said Tokimi. "By creating lifeforms who are wholly untouched by us, you hope to draw out the fourth being. Any intervention on his part would naturally be far more obvious since we would not have put any of our power in."

"Exactly." said Duran, pleased.

"You are far more cunning than you let on, Duran." said Tokimi.

"Is… is that ethical?" asked Ouros. "To leave life entirely unguided. To just let nature take its course."

"What about their powers?" asked Amon.

"Hmm." said Duran.

"What about their powers?" asked Amon. "Every race we've created so far has been given certain natural advantages. Ones' that make them able to thrive in the intergalactic community. The Juraians have their innate power. The Kuramitsu's their subspace."

Duran shrugged. "We won't give them any."

"Meaning that even if they make it to interstellar level, they will be subjugated. Then taken advantage of by everyone else." noted Amon. "No.

"By your leave, goddesses, what Duran is suggesting is simply wrong.

"Any species that evolved in such a way would have no moral guidance. No guiding principles. At best they would be able to create a society based on enlightened self-interest. And if they managed to survive long enough to become a space power, they would hate you.

"And they would be right to."

"What do you mean, Amon?" asked Washu.

"Think about it, Washu." said Amon. "Imagine if you spent years working tirelessly to put yourself through college. You had much less money than everyone else, so you had to work three jobs to do it. You weren't very naturally gifted, so you had to work twice as hard as everyone else.

But you get your degree, and you finally graduate.

"Only to find out that in the town you move to everyone already knows more than you. They are naturally smarter, faster and stronger than you. All your years of hard work have only qualified you to work a minimum wage job and act as a charity case.

And at the end of all of this, you find out that the reason for it all. Everyone else had a fairy godmother who gave them something special. But they passed over you because they wanted to see what would happen?

"What would you do? What would all of you do?" No one said anything. "Answer me."

Washu considered the question. "I'd probably spiral into depression and off myself, to be honest."

"Well um, I'd try to help in any way I could." said Tsunami.

"I would take whatever task had been preordained to me." said Ouros stiffly.

"…I don't deem to answer." said Tokimi. She didn't want to think about it, did she? Tokimi hated the idea of being powerless.

Oh, it was Duran's turn now. "I would use my disadvantages to my own benefit. Since others do not take me seriously, I will use my status as harmless to put ideas into their minds. Little by little I would edge them into murder. I would sew discord among them, playing brother against brother.

"And when they have consumed each other, I would drive a knife into the last ones' heart. I would look into his eyes, watching him die, and know true joy." Everyone looked at him in shock. "You asked."

There was a long, awkward silence.

"All kidding aside, Amon is right." said Tsunami. "This is wrong. We can't…

"We can't do something like this."

Duran let out a sigh. "Then we will have to abandon the search."

"What do you mean?" asked Tsunami.

"You have become invested in these civilizations." said Duran. "And you have each become more and more involved in their running. And as you have done so, our finding of things outside your control has dropped.

"Either the fourth being does not want to be found. Or it focuses on aspects of creation where you are not present."

"You mean… they are avoiding us?" said Tsunami, sounding hurt.

"Possibly." said Duran, noting that Tsunami was not good with rejection. "Or they may operate in a way that ensures they do not encounter you.

"In either event, since he or she only appears where you are not enforcing your will. So it stands to reason that the only way to find them is let go. To let matters run their course.

"You have already decided that releasing the fates of advanced beings is out of the question. So I have suggested allowing smaller systems outside our influence to appear. Ones that, if disrupted, will cause no great harm.

"But if you are not willing even to let a few minor worlds out of your grip, there is no point in continuing it. We may as well devote ourselves to another task."

Silence again. Finally, Washu began to tap her fingers against the table impatiently. After a few moments of this, she threw up her hands in defeat. "Duran is right.

"Sometimes you have to observe something in its natural state to understand it. We haven't seen any life develop without our interference. Nothing advanced anyway. We've interfered with it all."

"But what if they develop sentience?" asked Tsunami.

"Tsunami, the likelihood of life developing at all without divine intervention is astronomical." said Washu. "It is astronomical that it would ever develop into animal life. And further astronomical that anything would gain sentience.

"We'll probably end up with a bunch of dead worlds and one or two single-celled organisms. And if we don't, we might find what we've been looking for all this time."

"Might I suggest we take a vote?" suggested Duran.

"Hold on, we've always agreed that any one of us had veto power." said Tsunami.

"The situation is different." said Tokimi. "When you were deciding how to proceed with the experiment, that is one thing. The question now, however, is whether to abandon the experiment.

"For my part, I vote yes."

"I'm with Duran." said Washu. "This sounds like what we've been looking for."

Duran smiled. "The experiment must proceed. I vote yes."

Ouros shifted as eyes turned to him. Oh, this was glorious. The high priest who defined his entire reality by the gods was now having to choose. No matter what he said, he would have defied one of his infallible sources of wisdom. He would commit heresy. He knew it, and he knew Duran knew it. He hated Duran for putting him in this position. But he had no escape.

"…Two of the goddesses have already agreed. So I will vote with them." said Ouros finally.

Duran looked to Amon. "Amon?"

Amon clasped his hands before his face. He looked down, glowing with dark energy.

"No." he said finally. "There are too many variables we cannot account for.

"I would be willing to accept such an experiment if it were done by mortals. But for us to do it makes us responsible for their fate. And I will not be responsible."

Duran had all the votes he needed. But he could still fulfill formalities. "Tsunami."

"I'm not going to have any part of this." snapped Tsunami, crossing her arms and looking away. "And I don't care if you out vote me. This is wrong, and you all know it. If you try to do this, I'll stop you. Period."

Well, that was… an ultimatum.

"Tsunami," said Washu, "we agreed we'd act together in all things."

"But we're not acting together." said Tsunami. "You've changed the system, and you did it without me agreeing. We may have created this universe. But that leaves us with a responsibility to it. We have no right to create life and then abandon it to its fate, especially for some stupid experiment."

Well, this was bad. They couldn't have a war in heaven. Duran wasn't sure the universe would survive it. "Well," said Duran, "this seems to be an impasse.

I believe I have a compromise. Let us do it by proxy. I exist in a mortal form I am using to create a Jurai Kuramitsu empire. With a bit of persuasion, we could convince them to undertake the experiment."

"It doesn't matter if we do it by proxy!" said Tsunami. "We've already decided it's going to happen! What's the difference?"

"One relies on the consent of mortals." said Duran. "The other is unleashed from on high. It is entirely possible for the mortals to refuse my suggestion. They could shut down the project before it can begin.

"So it is, ultimately, up to them. Thus we are not creating life only to abandon it. It is the choice of the mortals." There was dead silence. Everyone looked to Tsunami. Tsunami shifted beneath their gaze, gradually losing the staredown. "Up to the Kuramitsus, you mean." she said.

"If you object to this course of action, Tsunami, perhaps you should appeal to Jurai." said Duran, coming up with an idea. A wonderful, terrible, awful idea. "Certainly your darling Tenchi could stop this, were he to put his foot down."

Tsunami saw where he was going with this. That made it better. "Okay, Duran. We'll play this your way." she hissed. "But if Tenchi decides that this experiment isn't going through, it isn't going through. You aren't going to look for alternative methods. You asked the mortals to do this, and they refused.

"Got it?"

Duran bowed. "Of course, Lady Tsunami."

The die was cast.

* * *

 **Author's Note:**

Okay, so, I was expecting to be done with the Amon arc by now. I guess we'll have to wait a bit longer. Still, at least we're finally getting into the Tenchi Muyo part of the crossover.


	12. War in Heaven

**Chapter Twelve: War in Heaven**

Amon entered the abode of Tokimi and found Ouros hard at work, as always. Above him, Tokimi floated, her gaze looking far afield. Was she ever not looking far afield? Were they anything but ants to her?

No matter. It was a question for later.

"We have a problem." said Amon.

"I find myself in complete agreement." said Ouros. "However, I am unsure as to how you knew about the growing strife amongst the protoss?"

"That was not what I meant." said Amon. "I was talking about Duran."

Ouros paused. "...I'm surprised to hear you say that."

"I've known Duran my entire existence, Ouros." said Amon. "Or close to it. He is becoming increasingly hostile to our plans. I don't believe for a moment that he genuinely is interested in furthering the experiment. At the very least he has an ulterior motive."

"Duran is filled with jealous rage." said Tokimi. "He knows he cannot act directly against us. So he has conspired to create a race that may one day do so in his stead."

"Is that why he wanted that experiment?" asked Amon.

"Yes." said Tokimi.

"Forgive me, Lady Tokimi." said Ouros. "But if you knew this to be his agenda, why did you choose to go through with it."

"His quest is futile." said Tokimi. "Even in our present diminished state, he could not hope to harm us. Should the creatures he creates prove a threat, we will know it long before they ever emerge as such.

"It will be a simple matter to correct the issue."

"What do you mean by correct?" asked Amon, not liking the sound of it.

"We have a variety of means to achieve our ends." said Tokimi, voice almost thoughtful. "We might use proxies to eliminate them. Or perhaps merely force them into a controlled environment. One where we can freely observe them, but where they are in no position to act against us.

"It is a matter worthy of thought."

Amon resisted the urge to speak up. Suspicions which had been plaguing him for a long time were now coming to the forefront. Yet surely if Tokimi could see here, she would have sensed them. No, no, Ouros' presence here was shielding him.

Either that or something else. He sensed something in the air. It was a malaise that troubled him. " Ouros, what was that you said about strife?"

Ouros looked up. "Our efforts among the protoss have caused them to advance greatly. However, their sense of... community spirit, is beginning to wane. Individual protoss tribes are starting to value their own members over the whole.

"Soon individuals may begin acting contrary to the interests of their tribes."

Amon didn't like where this conversation was heading. "Isn't that a natural part of evolution?"

"It is." said Tokimi. "It is also a complication. For our plans to succeed, the protoss must be focused on the whole of their race, rather than the individual."

"May I ask what those plans are?" asked Amon.

"No." said Tokimi. "You may not." She was usually more careful. Perhaps the plans were nearly complete. Tokimi turned her eyes to Ouros. "Ouros, I believe the time is to introduce them to the khala."

"As you wish, Lady Tokimi." said Ouros.

"How will bringing the khala into this help?" asked Amon, trying to keep his thoughts neutral.

"The khala already exists in the collective unconscious of all protoss." said Ouros. "It merely needs to be activated. Once it is brought to the forefront, it will act as an anchor. We goddesses will be able to utilize it in order to seize direct control, should it be necessary."

Amon stared at him. "Did you clear this with Washu and Tsunami?"

"They have their private projects." said Tokimi. "This one is mine."

Amon turned his back on her. "...I'm going to see what Washu has to say on the subject."

"Do as you like." said Tokimi.

Why did Amon feel like he was being provoked? Perhaps because he was. He had suspicions, but he wouldn't think about them now.

* * *

Tenchi looked down at Duran from his throne on his starship. He rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "Operation genesis?"

"Yes. An experiment I was hoping to conduct." said Duran. "I've already spoken with the Kuramitsu family on the subject. They are most enthusiastic. Unfortunately, it would require your assistance as well.

"I was hoping you might provide it."

"What exactly do you want to do?" asked Tenchi.

"How do I put this?" asked Duran. "The three goddesses who created this universe each designed races from scratch. They gave them their own innate qualities and advantages.

"However, it is conceivable that life could have developed without their help."

"And you want to try creating it?" guessed Tenchi.

He almost was intelligent, wasn't he? "More than merely life. I was to sew the seeds of Juraian genetic data across the stars. However, should any life be born, it will be without any of the power of Tsunami."

"Isn't that a bad thing?" asked Tenchi.

"Good and bad are relative." said Duran. "If sentients do develop they will never have known any difference. And as a research opportunity, this is unparalleled.

"Think about it, Emperor. We have the chance to see how life might have developed without the goddesses. This in itself will allow us to learn an immense amount about what part they had in your development.

"It won't take much in the way of a cost. Just a few cloned genetic samples on life-sustaining worlds."

"It doesn't sound hard at all." said Tenchi. "But I'm not really sure I should be spending time on this. We've been getting reports of pirates organizing. The gangs are getting larger and they are even becoming a threat to interstellar nations."

"Your right Tenchi." said Sasami from where she stood next to him. "And anyway, what if this life does develop? If it develops on one of these worlds we'll be responsible for it."

This was rapidly becoming an uphill battle. Duran had to clinch this. "Are we responsible for every animal that is transplanted to a new world? Even if they do develop, it will be eons before anything sentient comes about."

"And what if a sentient race does come about?" asked Sasami again.

Time to get creative. "Surely, Sasami, you don't doubt the benevolence of the goddess Tsunami. She will surely take any new life that may develop under her wing. For she is benevolent. What reason could she possibly have to reject so young and innocent a species?

"And, when they develop space fairing technology, we could welcome them into the fold."

"But I..." Sasami could do nothing as Duran used her against her own argument.

"Indeed, I believe that this may well be part of the goddess Tsunami's very plan." said Duran.

"Let me think." said Tenchi. "The problem is that if all of this life were to develop, we still have the pirate problem. They'd be quick to take advantage of these new life forms. And I'm not sure we'll have the manpower to protect them and our holdings."

"Then perhaps you should find a way to increase your manpower reserves." said Duran. "Cooperate with the Kuramitsus. Your relationship is good. If you work together, I am certain that you could easily police any such action."

"Police." Tenchi hesitated. "That's it! A galactic police force!"

"What?" said Sasami.

"For years we've been having trouble policing pirates." said Tenchi. "Red tape and jurisdiction get in the way. But if we can create a force whose operates independently of any one government it won't be a problem."

"Tenchi, this seems drastic." said Sasami. "If they don't have some kind of authority figure they report to they could become tyrants."

"So we'll make them beholden to a council of many different governments." said Tenchi. "We can negotiate to have them all sign off on it."

"But Tenchi, are you sure they'll agree?" asked Sasami.

Tenchi hesitated. Time to enter the conversation again. "Might I venture a suggestion, Emperor?" said Duran.

"Of course, Duran." said Tenchi.

"We need only to combine our plans." said Duran. "Let us speak to various scientific representatives in the various interstellar nations. We can get them to cooperate with us in Operation Genesis. Then, once we have seeded the life, we will create a... security force.

"Their role would be to ensure that criminals do not take advantage of less advanced races. The ones that develop will be under their protection.

"Now, naturally, this would require a rather large jurisdiction. From there, we need only little by little expand the area of crimes they cover. For instance, smugglers who might be using the neighboring star systems as a base. It will take a few centuries, of course, but you're still young.

"There is plenty of time to make the changes we need.

"And at the end of it, we will have a grand experiment that Tsunami herself will be proud of. The ties between the interstellar nations will be stronger than ever. And a new order will have arisen to police the stars."

Tenchi nodded. "This seems like a win-win, don't you think Sasami?"

Sasami clenched a fist. "...Yes, Tenchi. It does seem that way. Doesn't it, Duran?"

And then there was a shuddering. Duran was wakened as if from a dream and he looked across the cosmos to see the culmination of years of work. Tsunami was looking too.

"Sasami, what's wrong?" asked Tenchi.

"Something." said Sasami. "Something very serious."

* * *

Amon found Washu playing with the Overmind. She was teaching it to infest a large flock of spacefaring creatures. Ones which it had lured down to Zerus.

Which meant that the Overmind would be able to assimilate other words. Time was running out. He had to act, and he had to act fast.

"Good job, good boy Ovy." said Washu, oblivious. "Now remember, you shouldn't infest them too quickly. Otherwise, you might kill them before you can get your genetic material." Soon the creatures were assimilated. "Now you've got access to spacefaring creatures. I'm so proud of you."

"Washu." said Amon. Could he act against her?

He had to. He had no choice at this point. He might not have had the plan explained to him. But the information was all there. And none of the possible answers boded well for the protoss.

"Amon? What's wrong?" asked Washu.

Had she detected his thoughts? "A great many things. Duran is plotting something, I'm not sure what. Tokimi is planning to assimilate my species. And you are teaching the Overmind to travel between worlds.

"What are you thinking?"

"Hey, Ovy's got plenty of self-restraint," said Washu. "I've made it clear to him that assimilating sentient creatures is wrong."

"Well perhaps you should tell your sister that." said Amon.

"What is Tokimi doing?" asked Washu.

"She is activating the khala." said Amon. "Trying to force the protoss to give up their individuality."

"What?!" said Washu. "What is she thinking?! She's supposed to consult us on this!"

Washu waved and at once Amon and Washu were transported back to the ship. There they beheld Tokimi. She was glowing with a bright light, and all the minds and thoughts of the protoss race were swirling around her.

"Tokimi!" said Washu.

"Washu, what is the meaning of this?" said Tokimi.

"You tell me! Why are you activating the khala?" asked Washu.

"The khala was my project." said Tokimi. "I created it from scratch. If you three are permitted to pursue your personal whims with your favored species, I should be able to do so as well."

"Turn it off! Turn it off now-" began Washu.

Amon got his memories back. The events which he had set as the trigger had come to pass. And then the lights flickered. The voices went out and they were in darkness.

"What?" said Washu. "What is going on?"

The lights went back on. Tokimi was glowing again. "Washu, I'm picking up massive levels of psionic power surging from the surface of Aiur. The protoss are demonstrating a level of individuality that far exceeds normal parameters."

"What happened?" asked Washu, opening a console and typing busily.

"...It seems that the protoss have rejected the khala." said Tokimi, eyes narrowing.

"Impossible. It is connected to their very psyche." said Ouros.

Their. He did not think of himself as protoss anymore. Of course not. He had willingly consigned his own race to oblivion. And yet no one was detecting Amon's thoughts. Not even Tokimi.

Was it possible...

"Our attempt to shape their will appears to have backfired." said Tokimi. "Even now they are running out of control. Battles are taking place throughout Aiur." In only a short few months chaos had come to Aiur.

Amon acted. He opened his console and shut down the fields keeping the khala out. Tokimi screamed suddenly as the voices returned. The wars of the protoss now seemed to be taking place within her, and the goddess writhed in agony.

"Amon, what are you doing?" asked Washu, turning on him.

"Taking my chance." said Amon, activating numerous systems throughout the ship, sending them haywire.

Washu grabbed his hands and pulled them away. "Stop it Amon! That machine, what are you doing?" Then she collapsed as the power of the khala began to burn her as well. It was all she could do to raise a shield.

"Oh, that's right." said Amon. "It seems the khala is an entity capable of operating outside of your omniscience. You don't know that I've drawn the negative emotions of the protoss directly into the Tokimi. You see that connection works both ways, so if you were to remove the safety's it could prove quite deadly!" He finished the job and Tokimi's screams intensified.

"Stay your hand, Amon! Stop this madness at once!" said Ouros, grabbing him from behind.

Amon summoned his will and sent Ouros flying back to crash against a wall.

"Ouros!" cried Washu.

"Traitor." hissed Amon, taking satisfaction as the explosions consumed him.

"Why are you doing this?!" cried Washu.

"You know the answer." said Amon. "Did you really think I would just stand by and let you assimilate my entire race?

"I may not be able to read your thoughts, but I can reason. Your goal was to create a being comparable to yourselves as quickly as possible. So you deliberately engineered two races focused in different aspects.

"Essence and form.

"The Overmind was easy to create. You needed only ensure it continued to evolve under a single creatures guidance. But form required will, thought, sentience. And such a varied race would never willingly submit to its own extinction.

"So you created the khala. A means by which the will of my species could be enslaved. And once we had been forced into a single entity, the Overmind would merge with that. Creating a being of perfect essence and form."

"I didn't have anything to do with that project Amon!" cried Washu. "Tokimi did it on her own! You've got to help me shut this down before it's too late! We can still fix this!"

"Of course you think Tokimi acted on her own." said Amon. "The decision was made by your higher selves. Your ignorance is merely another deception."

Washu looked around. "Amon, listen to me, we... we weren't going to force the protoss to do anything! We weren't! Both the zerg and the protoss would have evolved until they became one species by choice!

"We never violate the free will of sentient creatures!

"Can... can you name one time we did?!"

Amon looked at her flatly. She was looking at the answer. And she realized it. "...Shit." said Washu.

And then she opened a portal and rushed out. Amon pursued as the ship began to collapse into nothingness behind him. He knew where she was going. And he wanted to see his success or failure with his own eyes.

* * *

Washu rushed across time and space and found her sun. The Overmind was preparing his swarms, or was he playing with them? He seemed to be moving several different parts of his swarm in a different manner.

It didn't matter. "Ovy, listen to me. We've got to go now. Your aunt is in trouble and-" And then a bolt of psionic energy shot through her chest. Ovy's will coursed through the wound like a tendril of light, impaling her. Blood seeped from her mouth. "W-why.."

Amon appeared, very calm. Very professional. "Oh right. I should have mentioned that my visit to Zerus was quite fruitful.

"You see, I was expressing my concerns to Duran. Then we realized that you didn't have any ability to observe this world. Of course, whatever we did here would immediately be made known to you when we left.

"So we had to get creative.

"I considered trying to brainwash this creature. But I decided you would catch on. So instead, I simply had a conversation with it. I made it realize that by merging with my species, it would cease to exist. And if it refused to assimilate us, well...

"You might just force the issue.

"Amazing what you can talk a creature only concerned with survival into, isn't it?"

Ovy had betrayed her. She'd... she'd watched his every step and struggled and he'd driven a tendril through her heart. Even now the tendril faded and she fell into the atmosphere, landing hard on the barren dirt. Once this planet had been a jungle.

Now all life had been sapped away. Nothing was left but her, Ovy, and Amon. Amon had turned her own child against her with one conversation. She found tears coming to her eyes.

Amon came into view over her. "I'd say I was sorry it had to end this way, but your just the avatar of a much greater being. You'll live.

"So this isn't the end. It's the beginning." Amon turned his back and walked away. "Goodbye. Professor Washu. It was... enlightening being in your service."

She was dying. She could feel her energies seeping away. Her connection to this world fading. She sensed Ovy near. Reaching out with one hand, she tried to touch him. "Ovy... listen to me...

"You... were... not... made to die... The protoss... have purity of... essence... you... you have purity of form.

"Amon is using you. You... you have to... have to... stop... him..." She saw the future. All possible futures. And she saw what had to happen. "I'm sorry..."

She wanted to say 'I love you.' But she never got that far. Her eyes closed and did not reopen.

And above the corpse of Washu, the Xel'naga, the heavens wept.

* * *

Everything froze. In that moment, Duran the protoss, and Sasami the Juraian ascended. And the goddess Tsunami looked at her student. She was torn between, grief, anger, and confusion. "What have you done, Duran?"

Duran wasn't really sure. He could only assume that Amon had exceeded his expectations. Washu was dead. He could feel it. And Tokimi joined her.

"...Well, I think I've been outdone." said Duran. "I was hoping to gradually create a race that was wholly immune to your omniscience. Then use them to seize control of things for myself. From the looks of things, though, Amon has beaten me to the punch."

"It won't end here, Duran." said Tsunami. "I hope you realize that."

"But of course, Lady Tsunami." said Duran.

Then with a mocking bow, he departed.

The protoss Duran and the Juraian Sasami lived out their days. Their friendship waned over time. They saw each other less and less. Until both died and they saw no more.

* * *

And Duran rejoiced. He rushed to the skies above Aiur and found Amon there. His friend stood over the decaying body of Tokimi. Beneath him, Aiur was tearing itself apart in a glorious war. And from that conflict would be born a new empire.

Not one of mere philosophy and science, but of domination and power. They would make a protoss empire of the universe!

"Amon, you have done it! We have done it!" cried Duran in triumph. "The goddesses avatars are dead! We have killed them! Who now can match this unparalleled and unassailable deed! What water would wash the divine blood that we have spilled from our hands! What meaning now exists in this universe save that which we, the murderers of murderers, give it!

"We have ascended! We are Xel'naga! Wanderers from Afar! The archons of the universe have been laid to waste and humbled! Those powers which stood beyond reach for all of eternity are cast down! And we stand over their bodies with the knives of our intellect in our hands!"

"Calm yourself Duran, we have further work to do." said Amon. And Duran obeyed. "With the avatars of Tokimi and Washu destroyed they have been set back. But they will try again.

"We must continue the plan."

Duran mastered himself. "Yes, yes you are right, of course.

"The new life we have seeded will take effect. That is a certainty. I have made it politically essential that life develops on the various worlds. From that life will develop all manner of races, and one will suit our purposes."

"Then I leave the matter in your hands." said Amon. "You must ensure that a race rises to prominence with the power and ability to achieve the next steps.

"For my part, I will gather to me the darkness of the universe. All those possibilities and threads of reality which exist in defiance to their will. Where once they were woven to fulfill their will in other ways, now they will be woven into a shield from their eyes. And from the threads of those who hate them and curse their names, I will forge a sword to strike at them.

"When the hybrid arises, we will have the means to safeguard this universe. Their monstrous agenda shall not come to pass."

Everything Duran could have hoped for. "You are right of course." He paused. "If I might make a suggestion, perhaps we should celebrate somehow."

Amon considered the question. "We could take on the form of Juraians and get lattes."

"Let's do that." said Duran.

The Fallen Xel'naga had come at last to this universe.

* * *

 **Author's Note:**

So, um, wham episode?

Seriously though, I had this planned out from the very beginning. The only thing I wasn't sure about was how exactly Amon and Duran were going to pull it off.

This marks the official end of the Amon storyline. Depressing as it is.

Enjoy.


	13. From On High

**Chapter Thirteen: From On High**

One of the benefits of being a goddess was that you knew how things were going to turn out. Even if you couldn't observe something, you could generally get a good idea of what was going to happen. Everything in the universe effected everything else. By following these effects, and calculating their likely trajectory, Washu could bypass omniscience blocking.

Of course, this ability required omniscience, which she hadn't had when Amon and Duran pulled their stunt. They'd been so distracted in the mortal coil that he had gotten the jump on them.

Now here they were meeting.

Of course, the course of action had already been decided. But having a conversation about it was still important. It was what separated them from a machine. Marked them as individuals. These conversations were important.

Especially now that they were having trouble reading each other. When Washu tried to sense her sister's thoughts, they were hazy. Mistrust had grown up around them.

Washu decided she ought to get to the chase. Any observers probably wanted to watch the conversation. So she took a deep breath and got into character. "Okay...

"This meeting of the Chousin Goddesses is now called to order. Now, maybe we should start with the positives."

Dead silence was between them. Tsunami was glaring daggers at Tokimi, who stared back, impassive. Washu didn't know what Tsunami was so angry at them about. She hadn't even been killed.

Let alone by her own child.

No, no, that was her avatar. Not her as she was now. The heartbreak she felt there had no relevance now. They needed to get the summary going, so they could go down a few levels.

"Okay, I guess I'll start." said Washu. "The protoss have settled down a bit now. Ouros has managed to introduce the khala in a more... diplomatic way. After a few generations, he pitched it as a means of ending the strife. People were generally happy about that.

"Add in a brilliant general named Adun, and Ouros was able to win a lot of victories. The protoss are now nearly reunified. They aren't the absolutely dominant power they once were, but they should rebuild. There is a large sect who oppose the adaptation of the khala, but there is no violence yet.

"Ouros has reorganized into a caste system. You have the Judicator Caste, who take care of government work and trials and such. The warrior caste handles war and police work. And the worker caste takes care of technological development. That and the day to day tasks that keep society running." The worker caste really had drawn the long straw, hadn't they? They got to develop tech, and they didn't get shot at. Plus they didn't have to do paperwork. "Jurai seems to be doing very well, despite what happened. But I think we should let Tsunami talk about Jurai."

She looked to Tsunami.

Tsunami remained silent for a moment. Then she looked down at the universe. "Duran's plan has worked perfectly. During the Aeon of Strife, they and the Kuramitsu's rose up. They are now the dominant power in this part of the universe. And they are still rising, thanks in part to the breeding programs that I started,

"I poured a large part of my power into the Jurai Royal bloodline after what happened. While it has limited my influence in other areas. I have caused the Juraians to begin picking marriages based on bloodline. Their goal is to create more powerful beings.

"Since the Jurai Royal Family is tied to my will, they won't be able to betray us without me knowing. Even if they are in the presence of a being like the Overmind, I should be able to perceive them."

Washu blinked. She had known of this before, of course, but for Tsunami to express her intentions like that. "That's...

"That's a bit paranoid of you sister."

"Well we have reason to be paranoid." said Tsunami. "Right Tokimi?" More glaring.

"We'll talk about this after we finish the meeting, Tsunami." said Washu.

"Fine." said Tsunami. "So, how is Ovy doing?"

Washu flinched despite herself. Don't show weakness. Ignore the heartbreak. Don't ask what could have been because you already know all possible futures. And you know the ones you didn't get. "The Overmind is still out there. While we can't observe him directly, I've been able to use a mathematical calculation to know. He's mostly assimilating animal races. And staying clear of sentients, like he was taught."

"How you taught him, you mean." said Tsunami.

"My avatar, yes." said Washu. "Amon has disappeared off the map. I have no idea where he is, or what he is doing. But he and Duran have gotten pretty good at knowing when we're acting. Even if we find him, he'll be able to predict what we do to him.

"That's why I think we should assign the job to Ouros."

"Ouros operates outside of our omniscience." noted tokimi. "Since he can defy our predictions, Amon will not be able to perceive him. Even so, such a task would require silence on Ouros' part. The more connection we have to him, the more likely Amon will be able to pick him out."

"Fine." said Washu. "We'll have him die soon. Passing away slowly in his sleep, beloved by his people for ending the war." That sounded awful. Washu felt like a third world dictator saying that, but she wasn't. She was a goddess and she had to do this to keep things in control.

It wasn't like it would even be bad for Ouros. But it still left her feeling bad.

"Couldn't that disrupt Aiur?" asked Tsunami.

Washu shook her head. "The situation is stable. Ouros tells me he has the succession planned out. We'll have to trust him."

"Fine then." said Tsunami. "Now, I haven't been able to find Duran. But I know where he has been.

"He's been spending most of his time on undeveloped planets. He knows that he's not a high enough priority for us to go after him. Most of the time he takes mortal form and helps establish great empires, or destroy them.

"His goals seems to be to force them to advance more."

"How many planets is he operating on?" asked Washu.

"Only a few hundred developed life, not counting the ones' that died out." said Tsunami. "Most of those that did never developed sentience. And those that developed sentience had no one to guide them very far. A lot of them wiped themselves out.

"A handful advanced to stone age societies. Most of those will die off. In fact, all of those will probably die off. Without any kind of guiding hand their morality develops at a snails crawl. In most possible futures they destroy themselves."

Washu shook her head. "Then the project was a wash."

"Pretty much." admitted Tsunami.

The elephant in the room had to be addressed. Washu knew generally how this situation would play out. That didn't make asking the question any less painful. "Well, I guess that leaves only one more question.

"What went wrong?"

"Nothing." said Tokimi.

Washu stared at her. Was she serious? "Nothing?"

"Everything that has occurred has done so to our benefit." said Tokimi. "We have located signs of the fourth being. We have set in motion chains of events. It will culminate in massive evolutionary progress.

"The Overmind will likely merge with the protoss despite Amon's efforts. Perhaps even earlier than originally planned. The khala that we created has been adopted by the protoss.

"Tokimi-" began Washu.

And then Tsunami punched Tokimi in the face. It was a good thing they were presently outside of creation. The force of the blow would have destroyed the universe. Tokimi reeled.

"That's all you care about is it?! The experiment!" roared Tsunami. "This is all your fault! If you hadn't gone and tried to force the khala on the protoss none of this would have happened!"

Tokimi reeled back a bit, then righted herself. "Amon was almost certain to turn on us at that stage. I choose to provoke him in a way that fulfilled our goals. And we have learned to analyze the data we receive far more efficiently as a result of his rebellion.

"We never would have begun to make use of Washu's probability calculations-"

"And what about Amon? What about Duran?" asked Tsunami, tears in her eyes. "What about the billions of protoss who were killed in the Aeon of Strife! These are our creations! We're supposed to be taking care of them, not using and disposing of them like machine parts!

"These aren't probabilities! They are people!"

"Their lifespans are less than the blink of an eye for us." said Tokimi. "Humans do not concern themselves with the wellbeing of single celled organisms. Merely how their presence effects a greater being."

"Oh, oh I see. So this is all just an experiment to you." said Tsunami. "There is only one problem. This experiment is meant to create a being GREATER THAN OURSELVES!

"Given that this being would have lived in the universe we created, what do you think it would think of you?"

Tokimi looked uncomfortable for a moment. "...Such a being would understand our reasoning."

"Would they?" asked Tsunami. "It would be one thing if we'd known about Amon's rebellion and allowed it! That would be in his free will! But you outright encouraged it! You went out of your way to create this situation!"

"It was the most efficient means-" began Tokimi.

"Fuck you Tokimi!" yelled Tsunami. "I'm done. If this is what we've come to, I want no part in this experiment. I'm going to go down to the universe we created, and I'm going to try and fix the mess we made of things."

And she turned to walk away. Tokimi raised a hand, concern on her face. "Tsunami, it was my intention to aid our efforts."

"Yeah, well your intentions god billions of sentient creatures killed." said Tsunami. "And unless we do something about it, it's going to get even worse."

"Tsunami is right." said Washu, after a moment. "If we were mortal beings we would be war criminals right now. If we were mortal... Amon would have been right. We did try to assimilate his species. And he had every reason to believe we would do it regardless of their objections."

"We cannot be wrong." said Tokimi. "We are the creators."

Washu sighed, allowing herself to feel guilty. "That's what we keep telling ourselves. But that's only because we assume that we define morality. We assume that Tsunami's rules are arbitrary.

"Maybe they aren't.

"We have a skewed perspective Tokimi. We don't understand what it is like to live in the universe we created."

"This... perspective, is inherant to our nature." said Tokimi. "We did adopt a lower form of life."

"Yes, but they were avatars." said Washu. "We could still teleport at will, shapeshift. Do all the rest. We didn't actually have to go to work, pay our bills.

"That's why our avatars, no, we, were blindsided. It was all about us.

"I'm the goddess of science and technology. I can't relate to someone who is ignorant."

"Then become one." said Tsunami.

"What do you mean?" asked Washu.

"Washu, I've lived the life of a mortal woman, Sasami." said Tsunami. "I was born, I lived, I had children, I died. It was a charmed life, but I still had to put up with hardships that I'd never even conceived of in my life as a goddess. I had all the information, but I didn't have the understanding to process it.

"It changed everything for me."

Washu considered things. And then she had an idea. "...I have an idea that might work."

"What is it?" asked Tsunami.

This had been the moment everyone had been waiting for, had it? "I'm going to become a mortal person. But not any ordinary person. I'm going to become the GREATEST SCIENTFIC GENIUS IN THE UNIVERSE!"

And at that moment two chibi doll versions of herself were formed.

"Washu you are the greatest!" said one.

"No one is your equal!" said the other.

Weren't expecting that, were you?

"Thank you, thank you." said Washu, waving the dolls off.

Tsunami blinked. "Isn't that missing the point?"

"Well, I could become ordinary." admitted Washu, returning to a serious expression. "But then I'd be taken out of the picture for years and years. Who knows what Duran or Amon might get up to. On the other hand, if I make myself into a mortal genius, I will be able to affect the universe extensively. But at the same time I'll be experiencing a mortal perspective."

"I will remain here." said Tokimi.

"I think you need to become mortal more than anyone else, Tokimi." said Tsunami.

"There will be time for that later." said Tokimi. "Our immediate priority should be limiting the damage done to the universe. Having destroyed our avatars, he is likely planning to strike at us directly.

"In the pursuit of this goal, he will likely attempt to finish our experiments in an altered form."

"You mean create some kind of army of greater beings?" asked Washu. That sounded like something she'd do.

"Likely answering only to him." continued Tokimi. "I find it likely that he will attempt to make use of the underdeveloped worlds in some means. Perhaps to meld genetic material together.

"Whatever the means, a simple matter of locating him would be to give him a target to attack. If he has no means to strike at us in the universe, then he may turn his efforts to striking beyond the universe."

"That could rip spacetime apart." noted Tsunami. "The damage from piercing the walls of the universe could kill trillions."

"I am well aware." said Tokimi. "I will descend to creation in an avatar that defies the ordinary rules of space-time. I will gather to me powerful entities such as Ouros and the Overmind. In so doing I will attract his focus. Leaving both of you to operate freely."

"Actually, I was thinking." said Washu suddenly. This was one element which had to be thrown out there, given the stakes. Though none of the readers would ever buy they'd consider it.

"What is it?" asked Tsunami.

"Maybe... maybe we should make life doesn't advance on those worlds Emperor Tenchi sewed with life." said Washu. "I know Duran will try to sew more, but we could stop him."

"No." said Tsunami. "What you are suggesting is treating the symptom. If we weren't so out of touch this never would have happened. We're not going to cover up our mistakes with yet another genocide.

"That will just make Amon right."

"Right, sorry, stupid question. Even I make those." said Washu. "Tsunami, what are you going to do?"

Tsunami remained silent. "...I've bound most of my direct influence onto Jurai. I intend to continue to influence them to become a good society dedicated to the good of all. They will spread their greatness with the rest of the universe through just deeds.

"And if Amon or Duran do become a threat we need to fight, Jurai will lead the charge."

"Well, it sounds like as good a plan as any we've made." said Washu.

"I know." said Tsunami. "It has me worried."

And then she was gone.

Washu sighed, One of the problems with being a goddess was that you knew how things were going to turn out. Even now, as she toyed with the threads of destiny, she observed what would happen. Her vision was not perfect, and details would vary based on free will.

But she knew the general direction, and where it ended.

Even so, there was some part of her that was uncertain of herself. What if she had missed something? What if Amon somehow found a way to fool her senses as a goddess.

The suspense was thrilling. So she certainly wasn't going to spoil it for everyone else.

Not that she'd remember any of this in a minute.

* * *

 **Author's Note:**

Okay, so I've more or less realized that Goddess Washu is a fourth wall observer. Probably also the others as well. In Tenchi Muyo, she frequently leans on the fourth wall anyway. It also provides a convenient reason for the goddesses to have these conversations.

Speaking with direct words must be an incredibly inefficient means of communication for them. And surely they could find other ways to express their indvidual identity. But if they are aware of an 'audience' observing their actions through the lens of written word, that explains it. They realize that for their narrative to work there has to be some exposition.

Of course, that raises more questions. Are we, as it seems to us, higher beings looking in on a two-dimensional fictional world. Or are we merely observing real events taking place in some alternate cosmos. Am I making up this story? Or am I merely channeling the goddesses will, fulfilling their desire for this story to be told, Are events accurate? Or have they been altered by the very attempts to transcribe them?

Hey, all of my characters have done nothing but talk metaphysics, Why can't I?


	14. Washu Takes the Academy

**Chapter Fourteen: Washu Takes the Academy**

Washu got off the mass transit system and made her way through the campus. The Jurai Royal Academy of Sciences had been founded by Emperor Tenchi Masaki. It had been millennia since his death, and now Washu had come to it.

And now Washu was determined that it would never be the same. She was ready to take this place by storm. Just as soon as she got these bags into her room. Her packs were two huge duffle bags that weighed her down badly. She hated carrying heavy things; it made her feel like a laborer. She hadn't aced high school to do work with her hands.

At last, she came to her dormitory. Here she was. It was a massive building with a large lawn. The room had red shingles, and the windows had blue curtains and glass. Or what appeared as glass.

Nice retro look. That was Washu had chosen it.

She got into the main room, checked in and got her keys. Then she began hauling the bags up the stairs. Washu had to pull the things hard to bring them up, and several times she had to stop and rest. Then she bumped into someone and fell over.

Looking up, she saw a tall, blonde haired man wearing a brown vest and pants. He was very handsome and had pointed ears. He offered a hand. "Hey, you're the new student aren't you? Nice to meet you; I'm Mikamo Kuramitsu."

"Thanks. I'm Washu Hakubi." said Washu, standing on her own. She tried to pick up her bags.

"Do you need some help unloading that?" asked Mikamo.

Washu rubbed the back of her head, feeling awkward. She hated showing weakness. But, she definitely did. No sense in pretending like she had it handled when she could get someone less intelligent to do the work. "Um, well yeah. Now that you mention it. I can't afford a storage cube, so I had to use standard packing."

"Don't worry, I'll use mine." said Mikamo, drawing out a pink cube.

Turning it repeatedly, he touched it to each of the bags. They faded into the cube, and they were gone. He pocketed the cube.

"Wow." said Washu. "Is that a new variety?"

"Um, yes." said Mikamo. "It's a prototype, actually. My family owns the manufacturing, so we get first pick, so to speak. How did you know?"

"Most personal storage cubes have a serious limit on how much mass they can take." said Washu. "And I've got a lot of mass in my bags. Meanwhile, they usually take 0.2 more seconds to draw things into them.

"You've got to let me examine it at some point. I love technology!"

"Um, okay." said Mikamo. "Sure, maybe later. Where is your room?"

"I'll show you." said Washu.

As they made their way up the stairs, Mikamo rubbed behind his head nervously. He glanced at Washu. "So why did you join the academy?" he asked suddenly.

"Why does anyone?" asked Washu. "I want to learn science with the best of them! One day I'll be the greatest scientific genius in the universe!

"I got the top grades in my class you know!"

They reached the top of the floor, and Washu glanced to one side. A silver-haired girl was leaning against the side of the wall, smiling in amusement. Washu didn't like the look of her. "Sure you did. Everybody does."

"Who are you?" asked Washu, annoyed by her gaze.

"I'm Naja Akara." said the girl. "Take my advice, drop the ego. It'll only get you humiliated."

"And just what's that supposed to mean?" asked Washu.

Naja shrugged and stretched. "Everyone who goes to a high-level college is either super qualified or super connected. So they're all used to being the best. But as soon as you get into the classroom, you will be in a classroom filled with the best.

"All that boasting is only going to set you up for a fall."

"Listen, Naja. I didn't come here to be one of many!" said Washu. "I came here to be the best! And I will be!"

"You're gonna be sorry." said Naja in a singsong voice as she walked off down the hall.

"No I won't." said Washu. She turned back to Mikamo. "Who was that jerk?"

Mikamo sighed. "That was the highest ranking student in the academy. Naja Akara."

"Well she won't be for long." said Washu, and she walked on.

"Don't you think you're being a bit arrogant?" asked Mikamo. "Naja knows what she is talking about. And I can say with authority she was right. I thought I was a genius before I came here.

"Then I met everyone else."

Washu laughed. What a great joke. "Arrogance means you've misjudged your capabilities. I have analyzed my capabilities compared to the average, above average and exceptional. I am beyond them all.

"Soon tales of my genius shall be known throughout the cosmos." She came to the door and typed in the code. Opening the door, she walked into her plain room. "Thanks for the help with the bags, Mikamo. You can put them down here."

"Sure." said Mikamo, drawing out the cube. Turning it several times, he summoned the bags. They landed on the floor heavily, and Mikamo flinched. "What was in those?"

Washu opened the bags. Reaching in she drew out a chair more than twice the height of the bag. Mikumo staired as she set it down. Then Washu reached in and got ahold of the desk, drawing it out. Setting it down, she reached in and drew out the lamp.

Mikamo stared. "Um, how are you..."

"What is it?" asked Mikamo.

"It's my newest invention." said Washu. "A bag that stores large objects and reduces their weight. I was trying to figure out how storage cubes worked and made this. Of course, once I did a bit of research, I found I'd had it all wrong.

"My bags operate on a completely different principle than the storage cube. It just has a similar effect. Even when my research is done on false assumptions, I make breakthroughs!" She paused. "So why did you join the Science Academy?"

Mikamo sighed. "Um, well, my mother wanted me to."

Washu blinked. She was expecting something a bit more interesting than that. "That's it?"

"See the Kuramitsu family has a tradition." said Mikamo. "Either we go into the Galaxy Police, or we go into the Academy. It all depends on our intelligence. I was pretty smart, so my family wanted me to go here."

"Did you want to be a police officer?" asked Washu.

"Well, actually, I wanted to be a painter." said Mikamo. "I'm hoping to go back to that once I've finished my studies here. Maybe as a side career."

"That's kind of sad." said Washu in deadpan.

"I didn't ask for your approval." said Mikamo in irritation.

And she'd put her foot in her mouth again. Why did she always do that. "Sorry, I didn't mean to offend you." said Washu. "I'm uh... not very good with people."

"I noticed." said Mikamo. "Listen um, I really think you shouldn't make any speeches like you did with Naja. Not in front of the class."

"Why not?" asked Washu. What was wrong with saying the truth.

"Well a good scientist isn't afraid to admit they might be wrong." said Mikamo. "And just in case you have misjudged yourself, you might want to make a good first impression."

"I'm not a good scientist. I'm a great scientist." said Washu, crossing her arms. "But if it'll make you feel better I won't make any speeches to the class about my greatness."

* * *

Washu was about to make a speech to the class about her greatness.

Mikamo reflected that he really should have seen this coming. Washu was standing in front of the class, making her first impression. And what a first impression it would be. He knew what she'd do before he opened his mouth.

"I am Washu Hakubi, and one day I will be known as the greatest scientific genius in the universe!" said Washu. "None are my equal in academics or any other form of education!" And then she went into an elaborate explanation. It touched on her superiority, the purpose of science, and other aspects. It made use of scientific terms that Mikamo had never even heard. The general thrust of it seemed to be that their entire history was building to Washu's arrival here.

The class watched in something between confusion and irritation. Mikamo wondered what exactly Washu was saying now. She had picked up a marker and was drawing elaborate designs on the board with a scientific basis.

Then Professor Clay snatched the marker. Washu blinked in surprise as the Octopus bearded man glared at her. Finally, he closed his eyes and looked at the class. "...Well, you certainly are approaching science with enthusiasm. Why don't you take a seat next to Mikamo over there."

Washu nodded in irritation and walked over. As she did, Seiryo and his goons glared at her.

"Can you believe that red-haired girl?" asked one.

"Can't wait until she gets chewed up and spat out by Naja." said Seiryo.

Similar murmurs came from the class. Washu clenched her fist and sat down. "I'll show them. I'll show them all."

Class began. Clay did his lecture, asked questions. Mikamo did his best to pay attention. Then Clay turned to Washu and quickly drew a problem. Wait, that hadn't been discussed.

"Washu Hakubi, would you care to answer this question." said Clay, smiling.

Mikumo looked over at Naja. "Do you know the answer to that?"

"No." said Naja. "This class is my weak point, and we haven't discussed it."

Washu walked up to the equation, blinked, and looked at it in curiosity. "Hmm, this wasn't in the standard textbook. Let me see, here, here, here." She got what might have been the right answer if Clay's expression was any indication. But Washu kept on moving. "No, no, this method of comprehending the math is completely wrong. Way too inefficient.

"Let's come at it from another perspective." She began to draw other calculations. Pretty soon a new equation had been formed. "And there!

"See, this is a much more effective way of comprehending the problem. Better than that silly graph system you're using."

"That graph system was put in place by some of the greatest academic minds in history!" said Clay. "Including myself!"

"Hmm, well then I guess their status as great academic minds is history." said Washu.

"You're out of line! This graph is nothing!" said Clay, looking over it. He looked like he was having a breakdown just looking at it. "It can't be right! You just made it up in the last five minutes!"

"Well, what's wrong with it?" asked Washu.

Clay looked over it, and Mikumo waited for him to find the problem. He looked, and looked and began to sweat. Finally, he turned away. "Go back to your seat, you ingrate. I have a class to teach!

"Naja Akara, perhaps you could come up and disprove this farce."

Naja came forward as Washu sat down. Quickly Naja looked over it, analyzing it for a long moment. "I... well...

"Actually this is... this is quite brilliant. But there are one or two problems with the method. See, here, and here." She made markings.

Clay sighed. "Thank you Naja Akara. I'm glad you found part of the problem. Go back to your seat."

"The main theory was sound though. Amazingly." said Naja as she sat down.

Washu fist pumped. "Showed them."

"Okay, so the girl's got some talent." said one of Seiryo's goons. "But there is no way she could keep this up for the other classes."

"Who does this red-haired nobody think she is, acting like she's the teacher, Seiryo." said another.

"Don't worry. She's just a nobody." said Seiyo. "And if she steps out of line, we'll set her straight. Nobody will stop us. We're nobles of Jurai."

Mikumo had a bad feeling about this.

* * *

 **Author's Note:**

So, I've been putting a lot of thought into how to continue things. I eventually decided to take a shot at novelizing Washu's backstory within the bounds of the continuity. After all, that is what I set up with the previous chapter.

Unfortunately, I was kind of stuck on how to do it. For one thing, there are only three established characters from Washu's days at the academy. Mikamo, Naja Akara, and Doctor Clay. The former two only appear in Light Novels that have never been officially released in the West. So I just took the outline for their personalities in the Wiki and did what I could to make them feel real.

Fortunately, aside from Clay who is a replacement scrappy for Kagato, almost nobody even remembers these characters. Mikumo only appears in one flashback in Tenchi Muyo and has no dialogue. We never even get his name or face. And Naja never appears at all. Though technically a clone of her does. More on that later.

Even after that though, I had a problem. Washu is defined by always being the genius. She always knows more than everyone else, and with the exception of Kagato, nobody ever succeeds in getting one over on her. So, how was I supposed to reconcile an inexperienced Washu who was new to the academy, with a more experienced and mature Washu?

My solution: Make her even more insufferable than she is in canon and no less brilliant.

Seriously, you don't honestly think that Washu would ever make herself mortal without godmodding the hell out of her stats, do you? She's far too egotistical for that. No, Washu getting brought down to earth is not going to happen because she runs into someone better at something than her. It'll take other events. Some of which happened in canon.


	15. Washu's First Day

**Chapter Fifteen: Washu's First Day**

Washu was on her way to history class in a good mood. Despite the glares of some butthurt nobles. Then Mikumo moved up to her. "Hey, uh, Washu, there is something you should know."

Washu smiled. "Don't tell me you're still doubting me, Mikamo?"

"No, you're brilliant." said Mikamo. "But we're going into history class now. And no matter what they say, you can't speak up."

Washu blinked. "What do you mean?"

"Look, the Academy was founded by Emperor Tenchi Masaki." said Mikamo. "It's still funded by Jurai. There is an accepted story to history, and they don't like people disagreeing with it. See Seiryo over there? He and his friends are nobles of Jurai."

"They really don't like people saying anything bad about Jurai. And the faculty looks the other way."

Washu was affronted. "What?! But... but science is about the pursuit of truth! How can scientists disregard alternative opinions! You're supposed to consider every angle!"

"Most of those scientists get their grants from Jurai." said Mikamo. "So consider this angle; Those guys will make your life miserable if you correct anything they say. Or if you question Juraian superiority."

"Well, it can't be so bad." said Washu. "I mean the Jurai Empire is pretty good all around. Barely any bad apples, so I'll stay quiet for this one. How bad could it be?"

* * *

Okay, this was pretty bad

The teacher stood before them. "And that is why the Jurai Bloodline possesses superior traits to all other races. In the hands of a less morally advanced race, such as the protoss, the power we possess could be badly misused.

"However, the goddesses learned from their mistakes in their original designs. As a result of this, the culmination of evolution resulted in the Jurai species. With our superior morality and power, we are able to aid lesser races and bring them into enlightenment. Much as was done with the Planet Kuramitsu-"

Washu couldn't bear it anymore. She'd just ask a question and get things on the right track. She raised a hand as Mikumo face palmed. "Excuse me!"

"Yes, Ms. Hakubi?" said the teacher.

"The protoss only predate Jurai by a few centuries." said Ms. Hakubi. "The races evolved roughly simultaneously. So how could the goddesses have learned from said mistakes?"

The teacher narrowed her eyes. "A good question. The goddesses exist outside of time and space. They were able to predict the evolution of the prototype race. Thus they were able to create-"

Washu raised her hand. "Another question!"

"Yes?" said the teacher.

"If the goddesses exist outside of time and space they could have easily predicted all possible mistakes, to begin with." said Washu. "So they could have just cut to the chase and created Jurai, if Jurai were, as you say, the culmination of evolution.

"What makes you so sure that the goddesses just didn't have a different plan for different races?"

Mikamo began to hit his head against the desk.

"Well-" began the teacher.

Another question occurred. "And wasn't it a protoss, Duran, who orchestrated the merging between Jurai and Kuramitsu?"

"Yes but-" began the teacher.

"And isn't it true that the Khalai Empire is more or less the equal of Jurai militarily?" asked Washu. "They have technology we don't fully understand. And judging from how they keep rejecting the Emperor's attempts to trade, they probably don't think much of ours."

"That is merely a sign of their hubris." seethed the teacher.

Washu scoffed despite herself. "Says the person whose proclaiming the entire universe to be inferior to Jurai."

The teacher obviously realized they had been caught. So they backpedaled. "They are not naturally inferior. They are merely… comparatively disadvantaged. And we have a duty to share our greatness with them."

"Hmm, well if that's the case why are you dismissing the entire history of all other races as a prototype for Jurai?" asked Washu.

"What?" said the teacher.

"Well if I were the protoss and I knew the academy disregarded their entire history as a mistake, I wouldn't attend." said Washu, noting the lack of any protoss. "Even if Jurai is superior, isn't such a speciest policy more likely to alienate people? Rather than enlighten?"

"Quiet!" snapped the teacher. "I haven't spent a hundred years at the academy to be questioned by some low born brat who isn't even from Jurai! Sit down and listen!"

Washu sat down as Juraian glares intensified. "Well, you said it, not me."

* * *

It was as Washu was walking back after classes that she noticed a collection of teenagers. They looked very confident and sure of themselves. It overall looked like they were going to scream some abuse. Probably to compensate for their complete lack of potential.

Making some calculations, Washu opened her portable console and made some commands.

"Can you believe her!" said one loudly. Everyone looked.

"Yeah, who does she think she is?" said another.

"Someone should throw that bitch on a bed and teach her a lesson!" said a third one.

Wasu sighed, then turned to walk over to them. This was not what they had been expecting, but they kept up a bold face. "Excuse me, are you fully aware of the psychological effects of rape? And if you are, do you understand the ethical implications of advocating it as a punishment? Especially for something as petty as having a different opinion?"

"Who do you think you are, coming in here and questioning Jurai's greatness!" said one.

"A thinking human being who is capable of logic and reason." said Washu sympathetically. "I know you haven't had much contact with them. But I'm sure if you talked with someone outside your posse of yes men you might encounter one." She paused. "Though you might have some trouble understanding them. Still, I believe in your ability to improve.

"Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to make a report to campass security." And she turned away.

"So what, it's your word against ours." said one of them.

Washu opened her console and pressed play.

 _"Can you believe her?"_

 _"Yeah, who does she think she is?"_

 _"Someone should throw that bitch on a bed and teach her a lesson!"_

Their expression was priceless.

"Actually not really." said Washu, beaming. "See, I saw your sub-par attempts at intimidation coming. I calculated a sixty-eight percent chance you would attempt a public humiliation. Likely involving threatening behavior. No doubt you would count on your rich and powerful family to bail you out.

"But now I have this recording. I hope you like packing, because you're going to be doing some.

Bye!"

And she turned to walk away.

"Get back here you bitch!"

Washu backflipped over their clumsy attempts to attack her. Not that they quit. She nonchalantly dodged, redirecting their punches. Soon they had succeeded in beating themselves to a pulp. Washu walked past their slumped bodies and waved.

"Oh, by the way, I learned to create energy swords when I was very young. Food for thought." she called back.

* * *

The head of campus security listened to the recordings. His expression was deadpan as he listened. Finally, he sighed. "…What do you expect me to do about this?"

The response annoyed Washu. "Well, he threatened to rape me. And he attempted to physically assault me. So I imagine some kind of disciplinary action is in order.

"I don't really think I should have to tell you your job."

The head sighed. "You spewed hate speech in the middle of a public classroom, and they took offense. And you want me to discipline them?"

What?

"I proposed an alternate opinion and asked questions the teacher didn't have an answer to." said Washu. "And they didn't 'take offense' they threatened to rape me and attacked me physically.

"I have recordings."

"Yeah, well look at what I have." said the head, before turning on his console and turning it around. "There are a number of pages. It's gone viral."

Washu scanned through them in shock. "New student at Jurai Academy goes on racist tirade?

"Tweets about how I should be expelled!

"All I did was say something which they didn't agree with. Did these journalists even do research?"

The head shrugged. "Of course they didn't. Truth doesn't sell. One of them probably heard an offhand rumor. Then they made the most offensive sounding headline they could to get clicks. Then a bunch of other ones saw that headline and did their own report based off of it.

"The reality doesn't matter. What mattered was that it went viral."

"But what about the facts?!" said Washu. "All I did was disagree with someone! That's not hate speech! It's free speech!"

"Well you know the expression 'facts don't care about your feelings?'" asked the head. "Well, the news doesn't care about the facts. And Juraians feelings don't care about them either.

"And 'not towing the party line' is pretty much the definition of hate speech these days. The academy faculty want you to report to the main building to state your case as to why you shouldn't be expelled."

"But that's not fair!" said Washu, feeling her preconceived notions crumbling.

He shrugged. "Welcome to the universe, Ms. Hakubi. Might want to think about your defense."

Washu hesitated. Was she really going to be expelled? No, no she wouldn't be expelled! She was the manifestation of truth! She would expel the liars! "My defense? Oh, well, you know what they say about defense.

"The best defense is a good offense."

She left the office laughing maniacally.

* * *

And here she stood in front of the faculty. Oh, the things she had learned about them in the last thirty minutes. The things she could make public. They sat there, serious-faced convinced of their own superiority.

But she wasn't coming to account herself to them. They were going to account to her!

"Ms. Washu Hakubi, you've made quite a splash in your first day." said Dr. Clay, smirking in triumph. "The media is buzzing with demands you be expelled. All kinds of people are outraged at your shameful behavior."

"In light of these serious charges we felt-"

Washu began to type.

"What is that?" asked Clay.

"Oh, this?" asked Washu. "It's a console made our of pure psychic energy. Most people can't create one, but I'm not most people. I use it to create specific effects using my inherant power. Really handy." She kept on typing.

"What are you doing?" asked Clay.

"Just the finishing touches on a project." Then she pressed a button. "And done. Don't worry. By the end of today, all those news sites will be out of business."

"What do you mean?" asked Clay. "What is this?"

"Well it turns out these people all have very low standards of journalism." said Washu. "And I figured 'hey, if they're this lax about the truth, what else are they lax about?' You know what they say; you don't get a symptom without a source."

Clay went still. "…What did you do?"

Washu shrugged. "Nothing too important. Hacked a few mainframes. Found incriminating evidence. Sent them all to the Galaxy Police.

"Now why don't we turn on a television."

"There is no television in here." said Clay. "Now why don't-"

"Oh how silly of me." said Washu. "Don't worry, I've got this covered." Typing a few commands she created dozens of windows. All of them showed news reported. Unedited footage of racist tirades by egotistical newscasters. Of them screaming at their employees. Documentation of bribes paid to keep prostitutes secret. And a lot more than that.

"What is this?" asked Clay.

"Every channel is now playing a whole host of incriminating documents. They prove the horrible things these morally bankrupt journalists have been up to." said Washu. " It's funny, they spend all this time posturing about their virtues. But as soon as their cause loses steam, they jump ship.

"I wouldn't have a problem with it if they genuinely believed I was being racist and reported on the subject. Their entitled to their opinion like everyone else.

"But when they're using it as an excuse to preen and posture without regard to truth? I take it personally." She smiled. "Right now, a large part of them are being arrested by the Galaxy Police. Even if they have connections, it doesn't matter because what they've done is public knowledge. Everyone knows. And the Galaxy Police will look completely corrupt if heads don't roll. That took me thirty seconds of work. On a whim. Because you were boring me, Clay.

"Do you want to know what will happen if someone makes me angry?"

"...Are you threatening us?" asked Clay.

"No, no." said Washu. "I'm not threatening you. I'm certainly not threatening to release reports on those 'dates' you had with little girls. I've already released those. As well as documentation on everyone who had a part in covering it up. You'll all be going to jail soon.

"But the rest of you, no." She laughed in a friendly tone. "No, I'm not threatening you. I'm sure even if I did investigate the grant money you get from Jurai and how it's used I wouldn't find anything at all. Really, what do you have to be afraid of from me?

"You've got nothing to hide."

The faculty looked at eachother. Then at her. Clay was white, his hands were shaking.

"…Okay, what do you want?" asked one of them.

Washu considered what she wanted that they had the power to give? She quickly came to a conclusion. "Hmm, let me think about that for a minute.

"Actually, there is one thing…"

* * *

Washu got bad to the dorm and was greeted by Mikamo. He blinked and walked up alongside her. "Washu, you're back!

"You didn't get expelled, did you?"

Washu spun her new keycard around on her finger. "Nope. I am now the Head of the Jurai Royal Academy."

"What?!" said Mikamo.

"You'd be surprised how quick these fake scientists bow as soon as you threaten to air their dirty laundry." said Washu. "They have all kinds of irregularities. They've embezzled all kinds of money from the Kuramitu's and Jurai.

"It's shameful."

"Fortunate we came to an arrangement. They are all going to retire on pensions, and give a large part of their wealth to charity." said Washu, opening her door. "Win-win, all around."

Mikumo struggled to speak. "You… you blackmailed them."

Washu smiled. "No, I just… expressed an interest in their past conduct. When they saw what happened with all those false reporters… well…" She chuckled darkly. "They felt they wanted to be my friend. Except Clay, he didn't get the opportunity."

"What do you mean?" asked Mikamo.

"It turns out he was visiting certain underaged girls and the academy covered it up." said Washu. "He's fired, he's done, and he'll never work in anywhere above minimum wage again." She walked through into her freshly furnished room and threw herself down on her bed. "Overall a pretty good first day at the academy. One or two minor mishaps, but we adapted pretty well." Then she sat up. "Ah darn it!"

"What?" said Mikumo.

"I'm going to have to move my bags again!" said Washu.

She'd just gotten everything unpacked and now she had to do it all over again. Worst. Day. Ever.


	16. The Emperor's Regards

**Chapter Sixteen: The Emperor's Regards**

And that was how Washu Hakubi ended up in a maximum security prison cell.

Actually, there had been some bits in between. She'd familiarized herself with her new office. Gone to a few classes, only to remember that most of the faculty had retired. She'd done a bit of browsing. Mikamo had helped her with moving all her furniture back to her new quarters.

And then the Galaxy arrived and placed her under arrest.

They'd been very polite, and Washu hadn't had the heart to resist arrest. It turned out that by hacking all those systems, she had technically committed a crime. Who knew?

They'd taken her inventions away from her, and she'd made sure to explain their function. After they came to ask about them, of course. There was such a thing as professional pride. They seemed very impressed by it all.

Still, there were all kinds of issues with these restraints. Washu guessed they could be useful against someone who wasn't her. But it still bothered her. The whole idea of restraints was to contain anyone who needed containing.

She could break out easily.

But she calculated that someone was going to offer her a job. Someone with her skills and abilities was hard to find, and they probably had some kind of deal in the works. She'd wait to hear it out. If she liked it, great, if not she could always just break out.

Being a genius was fun.

* * *

Emperor Nesshin listened to the briefing within the Galaxy Police Headquarters. His hands were clasped before him. And then it finished. He sighed. "So let me see if I have this clear. This, Washu Hakubi, arranged for the arrests of a large majority of the media. She broadcast proof of their crimes on television. And then she blackmailed the faculty of the Jurai Science Academy?"

"Yes, Emperor Nesshin, that is more or less the case." said the Head of the Galaxy Police, Makum Kuramitsu. He was a burly man with a long, curly, blonde beard. He wore a blue uniform and was sitting across the table. "We've been working over time arresting all the people she provided evidence on. A really disgraceful lot, I can't believe some of these people.

Even so, some of the technology she had her was... remarkable. It could redefine our society.

"We don't know the source. She claims to have invented them herself."

"I like her already." said Nesshin.

"What?" said the Head. "But she blackmailed people, hacked numerous databases and got half the faculty fired."

Nesshin sighed. "The Science Academy hasn't invented anything worthwhile in years. They tell me it is because they are at their peak. I always suspected they were lying. Now I'm sure of it.

"Still, I think I'd like to meet this one.

"She might be of interest."

"As you wish." said Makum. "She's been fairly compliant, aside from some snide commentary."

Makum and the Emperor walked out and found Azaka waiting. The knight stood to attention, his staff at the ready. Nesshin smiled.

"At ease, Azaka." said Nesshin. "No one will try anything here."

Azaka went at ease, obediently. "Emperor, will we now return to Jurai."

"Not yet." said Nesshin, an idea occurring. "I've decided to cause a disruption."

"A disruption?" asked Azaka.

"Yes." said Nesshin. "Just to keep people on their toes. Nothing harmful."

"With all due respect, Emperor," said Azaka, "your father always believed in harmony."

"There is a difference between harmony and stagnation, Azaka." said Nesshin. "The one is the balance of all aspects of existence combined into perfection. The other is a tree refusing to bend in the wind. Until one day it breaks.

"Come, we've got a prisoner to visit."

* * *

Washu had managed to hijack the life detection systems. It had been somewhat challenging, manipulating her console with only her eyebrows. But the motions she made were mostly for show anyway.

Now she could detect someone coming.

"Five, four, three, two, one..." said Washu.

The door opened, right on cue.

In came a man dressed in fine, flowing white clothes. He had a long, neat, beard and black hair. His eyes were keen, and he looked at Washu with interest. For a moment he continued to do so. With him was a black-bearded, stocky man who stood beside him.

Washu humored him.

"Washu Hakubi." he said.

"Oh, so you're the warden are you?" asked Washu. "You know these restraints really aren't very good. I've already identified several dozen easily exploitable weaknesses to the observant. Also, the energy shield in this cell doesn't disrupt the use of psionic energy within it.

"So if I got loose, I could probably cause all kinds of problems."

"Watch your mouth, you are addressing the Jurai Emperor!" said a guard.

"Stop it Azaka; the title is just that. A title." said the Emperor.

"So the Emperor huh?" asked Washu. "What an honor."

"So, you believe you could escape do you?" asked the Emperor.

"Well yeah, I just uh..." Washu looked at her top of the line energy cuffs. "Well it occurred to me that I may have been a teensy bit reckless, so I figured I shouldn't dig myself deeper."

"Could you demonstrate?" asked the Emperor.

"Sure." said Washu. Focusing her power, she hit all the weak spots at once. Immediately the cuffs fell apart, and she walked forward, free. "Tada! See, the energy flow is a bit haphazard. I have one or two adjustments in mind that could fix that, though."

The Emperor nodded. "Very impressive.

"So tell me, Ms. Washu, why did you join the Jurai Royal Academy?"

Washu shrugged. "Well, I wanted to learn everything. I want to know the entire universe, past present and future. And I thought going there would help me do that."

"And how did you go from that you ending all those career?" asked the Emperor.

Washu paused thoughtfully. "...It was a bunch of Jurai Nobles. I spoke out in history class, and everyone said it was hate speech. All I did was disagree. You learning by taking in other perspectives and adjusting your own to fit the truth.

"And then they came after me and tried to bully me. They said things that should have gotten them expelled, and they'd done to other people too. Then they planned to try and expel me! Me!

"So I um... sort of snapped."

"And brought down the entire news media?" asked the Emperor.

"Yes." said Washu. "I think I might have gotten a bit carried away. You're angry at me, aren't you?"

"Not really." admitted the Emperor. "In fact, to I'm going to be honest, Ms. Hakubi. I am not satisfied with the current state of Jurai. My father, Tenchi, gave up most of the day to day governance in our society to the Jurai Royal Council. I am a figurehead now unless we are faced with a war. And who would be foolish enough to face the invincible Jurai Emperor in battle?"

"Nobody?" guessed Washu.

"Nobody." agreed the Emperor. "So aside from becoming a galactic conquerer I find themselves with very little to do with my time. I make public speeches. I organize charities. And I watch Jurai slide into decadence."

"That's a bit cynical, your majesty. We're in a golden age." said Washu.

The Emperor laughed. "Have you read the history of earth, Washu?"

Washu put a finger to her chin and thought. "Mmm, you mean the world that developed a technology using race without the gods? No, can't say I have."

"You should." said the Emperor. "Though their technology is limited to bronze spearheads at this point.

"However, I have noticed something. Whenever a society on earth reaches an era where no one can rival them, they stagnate. They stop developing. They seal themselves off from the universe and fall.

"To fall you have to reach some kind of height. And I'm afraid that Jurai might be at the edge of a cliff. No one questions us. We can do more or less what we want. Our nobles and royalty are practically above common law. We police ourselves.

"Now, if I were an average person I would resent the fact."

"Logical." said Washu. "Not seeing what this has to do with me."

"And some of those average people will start looking to get even. And if we stagnate, sooner or later they'll succeed." said the Emperor.

"Not seeing what this has to do with you, either." said Washu.

"The best way to stop a pond from stagnating is to get the water moving again." said the Emperor. "And to do that you need a disruption.

"So I'm going to make you an offer, Washu Hakubi. I'd like to pardon you for your crimes. You can go back to the academy. But I'm also going to pardon the people you blackmailed."

Washu stiffened. "Does that include Clay?"

"Of course. He's actually one of the few scientists who is doing real research." said the Emperor. "You should look at some of his prototypes. You may learn something. Though I'll have him watched. No cover up will save him this time.

"Anyway, you get to be head of the Jurai Royal Academy. I have only one price."

"What's that?" asked Washu.

"I want you to break Juraian control on the academy." said the Emperor.

Washu blinked. "You want me to undermine your own power?"

"Exactly." said the Emperor. "You had inventions on your person which defy anything we've seen. I want you to perfect them. Sell them. Provide them to everyone whose willing to pay for it.

"That will make the academy self-sufficient. An organization devoted wholly to developing new inventions.

"And since I will no longer control the academy, I will be able to justify pouring funds into a proper R&D department."

"Oh, very shrewd." said Washu. "I'm guessing you want special privileges on the stuff I develop."

"Of course." said the Emperor. "But we won't let anyone know about that. Oh, and one more thing."

Washu rubbed her wrists. "What is it?"

"You have to graduate the academy before you can make any of these decisions." said the Emperor.

"Oh come on!" said Washu.

"You want to learn everything? Pass the academy like a normal person." said the Emperor. "It will give you more credibility when you come into your own anyway. Until you do, I'll assign someone else to run the academy in your absence.

"Oh, and uh, no more starting a scene. It would be well if you tried to blend in."

"Yes, teacher." said Washu.

"Good. Let her go." said the Emperor. "I want her on the first ship back."

As the Emperor watched Washu's ship depart, he smiled. Makum ahemed, and he looked back. "Yes?"

"Come now," said Makum, "you don't honestly think she'll be able to run things, do you?"

"Maybe she will." said the Emperor. "Maybe she won't. But no matter what happens she'll be throwing down a gauntlet. Remember, I've pardoned all the people she humiliated.

And they'll want revenge. They'll all be competing to try and one up this upstart. There will be a flurry of activity as they try to outdo her. And she'll have to respond in kind.

"Sometimes there is no orderly path forward. You have to throw a little chaos into the system to make it work again."

"And who do have in mind to run the academy?" asked Makum.

"I thought a member of one of our families might be a good choice." said the Emperor. "If only to make the corruption transparent."

"Corruption?" asked Makum. "That's going too far!"

"I'm only joking, of course." said Emperor Nesshin. "All I meant was that I want people to start thinking again. By making our control over the academy truly obvious, it will make people talk. They will acknowledge it as a problem. And when people acknowledge a problem, they start trying to solve it.

"And they usually solve a bunch of other issues on the side."

"And how are we going to regain control of the academy once we've lost it?" asked Makum. "Or are you really planning to let it go?"

"Of course not." said Emperor. "If Washu makes a mess of things, we can simply come in and restore order. No harm done. If she succeeds well... there are many methods of control besides funding."

"Political marriage?" asked Makum.

"One of many, Makum." said Nesshin. "One of many."

Everything was proceeding as he'd hoped. It was good to be Emperor.

* * *

 **Author's Note:**

I couldn't find any data on who ruled as Emperor before Azusa Masaki Jurai. I do know that Lady Seto was operating during this period. But I decided that I'd make an OC Emperor, Azusa's father. Since Tenchi is all about harmony and working together, I decided to make Nesshin a contrast. Someone who sews discord for the purposes of forcing people to adapt and improve.

Also, if things are working out too conveniently for Washu, keep in mind that Goddess Washu exists outside of time and space. She could have easily chosen to put her super genius self into exactly the right period of history for everything to go perfectly for her. To an extent, she's created a power fantasy for herself that coincidentally makes things much better for the people of the universe.

That, by the way, is the critical reason why Washu is not a villain. She might go power mad, but she'd never go power mad at someone else's expense if you know what I mean.


	17. Ultra Energy Quest

**Chapter Seventeen: Ultra Energy Quest!**

Washu had been quieter in class since her first day. She generally limited herself to occasionally correcting the teacher. Naja preferred this, though she noticed most of the teachers were too afraid to hold a grudge.

What had Washu done?

She wondered about it, until one day she noticed that Washu had left behind a book. It was entitled: Realspace subspaces and can they be created?

Glancing through it, Naja realized she must have gone through it with a marker. Making corrections here and there. As usual, she couldn't see any problem.

Even so, she decided she ought to return it. It was the least she could do.

* * *

As she walked to Washu's apartment, Naja heard voices. As she drew near the door, she heard a scream.

"No, not so hard, Mikamo. I need you slow and steady." said Washu.

"It's hard keeping this up." snapped Mikamo, voice breathless.

Naja hesitated, looked at the book, then knocked. The door opened, and Washu peered out with bloodshot eyes and messy hair. "Yes, what is it?"

"What are you doing?" asked Naja.

"Oh, Mikamo was helping me put furniture into my new bag." said Washu, opening the door to reveal one of the bags she had brought with her. "I was testing expanding the storage space a bit."

"Bags?" asked Naja. "How could you fit furniture into a bag?"

Washu grabbed a lamp and brought it over to the bag. "Like this." Driving it down, the lamp entered the bag.

Naja stared in shock. "But that's... you didn't transfer it into a subspace."

"Of course I did." said Washu with a smile. "The bags have a subspace always open inside them."

"But that would take a massive amount of energy." said Naja. "To the point of being impossible. Nobody has ever been able to generate enough power to create a subspace in realspace."

"Nobody but me." said Washu proudly, voice smug.

Naja hesitated. "But how could you get the power?"

Washu stopped smiling. She rubbed her head. "Well, um, it's kind of embarrassing but here it is." She walked over to one of her other two bags and drew out a red gem. She raised it, and Naja sensed power from it. A lot of power.

"A gem?" asked Naja.

"One of three." said Washu. "I was raised in a monastery on Kanemitsu. The only thing I had with me were these three gems. When I learned more, I found that they possessed a truly massive amount of power. These bags were part of an attempt to harness it.

"I've been trying to learn how to channel more energy to create a larger subspace. Mikamo and I were testing it."

"Mind if I watch?" asked Naja.

"Sure, why not." said Washu. "Let's finish this."

She and Mikamo grabbed a huge desk and lifted it up. Gradually they began to put it in. Then the bag emanated light and exploded. Naja was thrown off her feet and hit the ground hard. For a moment she lay there, trying to get feeling back in her body. Then she sat up.

Washu and Mikamo were likewise stunned. And there was a huge pile of furniture all over the floor. They stood up.

"So did the subspace collapse?" asked Mikamo.

What a stupid question. "You tell me Mikamo?" said Washu in deadpan.

"What went wrong?" asked Mikamo.

Washu sighed. "The larger I make the subspace, the more energy I have to pour in. But if I put too much, it bleeds out into the bag. Eventually, the bag breaks, and it collapses."

"Can I see the calculations?" asked Naja. She was curious despite herself.

"Sure." said Washu.

Washu summoned her console and typed in a few words. A screen appeared with data running down it. Washu spun it around and shoved it toward Naja. She caught it and wondered how Washu did all these things.

Naja looked over the calculations. They were very good. But there were oversights. Washu was a genius, but she went through things too fast. She didn't check her work.

Typing on the console, Naja made several notes as Washu looked on. "Hmm, here, and here. And here." She spun it around and sent it back to Washu, who caught it. "Try this."

Washu read it and looked annoyed. "What makes you so sure this will work?"

"The energy output is too unstable." said Naja. "You need to alter it, so it isn't all just flowing out all at once."

"Alright, I'll try the alterations." said Washu, looking at this again. "Hey, that might actually work. Come on Mikamo; we've got to get this furniture back in."

"The bag is destroyed, Washu." said Mikamo.

"Oh right." said Washu. "Well, I guess I'll have to reform it." And reform it she did. Once again Mikamo and Washu began fitting the furniture all into one bag. Little by little, it filled up. Naja got some distance between herself and them as they watched. Eventually, the entire room had been fit in, and the bag hadn't exploded.

Washu wiped a bead of sweat from her brow. "Wow, that really worked."

"Have you considered putting this into mass market?" asked Mikamo. "You could make a killing with it?"

"I could." said Washu. "But I'm still using the gems as an energy source. So unless I can find something else to power it, it's not an option."

Naja put down the book she'd brought "….Let me show you something."

She drew out a datapad and gave it to Washu. Washu looked through it, gazing with narrowed eyes. Eventually, she looked up. "Naja, what's this?"

"It's an invention I'm working on." said Naja. "A way to create a substance that could theoretically power anything.

"See, Jurai has access to a power which is, as far as we know, impossible. The trees shouldn't logically be able to do the things they do. But because they are blessed by Tsunami, they can.

"What does that tell you?"

"Mmm…" Washu seemed to be contemplating things.

"That there are things in the universe which don't make sense. From our third dimensional perspective." said Mikamo.

Washu looked up in surprise. This was probably the first time someone had answered a question before her. She'd overthought things. "Exactly." said Naja. "There are higher powers. Now, if you could find a way to access one of these higher powers it could be used to fuel all kinds of things.

"Maybe even your subspace."

"That sounds pretty interesting." said Washu. "Any leads?"

Naja remained silent for a moment. Was she really willing to trust her information to these two? It was a risk. But if it worked out, she could start her research way ahead of schedule. Mikamo had serious resources, because of his family. And Washu was almost as smart as Naja.

"Well there is one." said Naja finally. "I've heard that there is a group of protoss called the Tal'darim. Apparently, they make use of a substance called the Breathe of Creation. It's said to be able to put people in contact with a higher being."

"Don't you mean Ultra Energy Matter?" asked Mikamo. "The stuff we use for starships?"

"Well yes." said Naja. "But it's a variant. Ultra Energy Matter is the base. The Breathe of Creation is infused with special properties. They allow it to heighten ones' interdimensional connection."

"So what's the catch?" asked Mikamo,

Naja sighed. Here was the point where every one of her attempts to get support fell short. Here was the deciding moment. "The Tal'darim hate everyone. They control all known sources of it, and anyone who tries to get some gets killed.

"If I could get ahold of some of the Breathe of Creation, I might be able to use it. It could be a means to harness the entity that created its power."

"Sounds risky, dangerous, reckless, and scientific." said Washu. "I'm in."

Mikamo looked doubtful. Best not to be upfront about her intentions. Naja looked down, nervously. "Um, I'm not planning to go to the Tal'darim worlds, Washu. I don't even have a ship."

"I do." said Mikamo quietly. They looked at him in surprise for a moment. Mikamo shifted nervously. "Um, I have access to a spaceship. If we were going to go get some of this Breathe of Creation I could probably transport us there."

"Mikamo, this could get us killed." said Naja. Saying it wasn't helping her case, but it wouldn't be fair not to let him know the risks.

"Sure, but you've got to take risks once in a while as a scientist." said Washu. "Besides, it's not like we're going to barge into the place guns a blazing. We're just going to get a small amount of the stuff for research purposes.

"They won't even notice."

"What about classes?" asked Mikamo.

"It's not going to hurt if we take a week or two off." said Washu. "Especially in the pursuit of science." She paused. "So where do you think we should get this Breathe of Creation?"

"Slayn is the largest source of it." said Mikamo. "The whole planet is infused in the stuff. But the Tal'darim blow anyone who goes there out of the sky. They've even been known to shoot at Juraian vessels."

"Friendly sort, aren't they?" asked Washu in irritation. "How do these Tal'darim fit into the whole Khalai-Nerazim split anyway?"

"Well the Nerazim were forced to flee Aiur due to Khalai persecution." said Mikamo. "Although apparently some of the Nerazim caused massive psionic storms on Aiur. The records are incomplete, and both tell different stories.

"The Tal'darim, though, left Aiur long before the split. When Ouros began his reforms, they completely rejected them and fled into space. The Nerazim and Khalai have a lot of differences. Even so, both hold their homeworld, Aiur to be of massive religious significance.

"Some Nerazim might want to wipe every Khalai off the map. But none of them would want to destroy Aiur."

"What's your point?" asked Washu.

"The Tal'darim don't hold Aiur to be significant." said Mikamo. "It's just one more planet to them. They don't even worship the goddesses.

"Instead they serve a god, I think his name was Amon or something."

Washu looked at him. She felt like she knew that name somehow. But she'd never heard it before in her life. "I don't think we should go to Slayn. Naja, do you have any thoughts?"

"We should go to an outlying Tal'darim world." said Naja. "Bel'Shir is sparsely populated. We should be able to find some Breathe of Creation there. If we can get in and out quickly, we should be able to get enough for analysis purposes."

"Why hasn't anyone tried this before?" asked Washu.

"Well," said Naja, "the Tal'darim are very good at finding and blowing ships out of the sky. Very good. In fact, during the reign of Emperor Tenchi, a Juraian Ship went off course. It was one of the original ones, and it flew into Slayn's airspace. It ended up in a skirmish with the Tal'darim.

"It was destroyed. The Tal'darim immediately launched a series of raids against Juraian worlds. They started glassing entire planets as an example. The didn't stop for civilian targets, either. The Emperor himself had to get involved and destroy their fleet."

"They started an all-out war because someone accidentally flew into their airspace?" asked Washu.

"I did say they hated everyone, didn't I?" asked Naja.

Washu paused. They sounded like they were a bit touchy. She ought to consider this carefully. "Okay, new plan. I'm going to develop a new invention that will let us slip into Slayn with nobody else the wiser. Once I've developed that, we'll pack our bags, set out for Bel'Shir and get the Breathe of Creation." She paused. Mikamo was looking at her. "What?"

"'You mean 'we'll pack our bags, set out for Bel'Shir and get the Breathe of Creation. After we get a leave of absence.'" said Mikamo.

"Oh fine!" said Washu. "Have it your way! You're a real killjoy; you know that Mikamo?"

"Maybe." said Mikamo. "But it's my ship."

"Then it's decided." said Naja.

"Right, sure, whatever." said Washu in annoyance. "I should be running things, though."

Well, at least they had a new research opportunity. This would be interesting if nothing else.

* * *

 **Author's Note:**

To be honest, I didn't plan this chapter.

My original idea for this was for a Nerazim and Khalai exchange student to enter the Juraian Academy. But it just didn't seem like the sort of thing they would do. So instead I focused on Washu's invention, saw an opportunity to bring Starcraft into things, and took it.

Enjoy.


	18. Descent to Bel'Shir

**Chapter Eighteen: Descent to Bel'Shir**

Professor Clay, or Doctor Clay as he preferred to be called, was working upon his experiments. Zero did not desire to disturb him. It did not desire anything. However, Zero was bound to carry out the instructions given to it. The machine had been performing its duties. It was still performing its duties. It had a report to make, one that outweighed even Doctor Clay's research.

It entered the lab and found Clay looking over a number of organic specimens. He was typing, causing mutations at a rapid rate. Metal morphed into wood. Then wood warped again.

Zero was unsure of his intentions with such experiments.

"Zero," said Clay, "I instructed you not to disturb me save in the most important matters. I am trying to transform matter from one state to another."

Zero gazed upon its creator and knew him to be a male of a humanoid subspecies. He wore an eccentric beard style. One that marked him out in a crowd. "My apologies, Dr. Clay. It was not my intention to violate your directives. However, my program parameters indicate that under certain circumstances it is permissible."

Clay looked up. "I suppose it is. What is so important?"

"You requested that I monitor all irregular actions by the entity known as Washu Hakubi." said Zero. "My sensors indicate that she has joined with Naja Akara and Mikamo Kuramitsu. They checked into one of the Kuramitsu's personal hangers. From there they took Mikamo's personal vessel and took flight.

"I placed a tracker on their ship. Their present course will lead them into the Koprolu Sector."

Zero created a screen that showed the relevant data. Clay leaned forward and tweaked his beard, frowning. "The Koprolu Sector? That is protoss jurisdiction. What could they be trying to achieve there? Likely it is part of Washu's experiments.

"Zero, analyze all resources in the Koprolu Sector that cannot be found in Juraian Space."

Zero did so. It calculated all the knowledge they had of that region. It ran advanced equations that geniuses would take months to finish in moments. Then it finished. "Here the list you requested, Doctor."

The data showed. Clay grunted in irritation. Had Zero served him badly? "Your processing speed was 0.2 seconds slower than I anticipated. No matter, I will correct the matter once we have more time." Clay looked still closer. "For now let me see that."

He filtered through the data, and Zero ran calculations of its own.

"Hmm, let me see." said Clay. "What would the nature of this alliance be? No doubt Washu would lack the resolve to begin it on her own. But she might be persuaded. Naja was working on a power source if I recall correctly. Likely she wishes Washu's help for her skills.

"That leaves Mikamo…" These thoughts confused Zero. It was programmed to calculate mathematical equations. However, motives were still an area in which it required adjustment. It desired to be of service to Doctor Clay and so it calculated motives as best it can.

"If I may offer a possibility, Doctor." said Zero.

Clay looked up with interest. "Speak? This should be an interesting test."

"The Kuramitsu family would benefit greatly if they were to be part of such a discovery." said Zero. "Were they successful."

Clay looked up. "So they would, Zero. Well done.

"Still, that leaves an unanswered question. Naja's theory requires a source of power outside of that of physical reality as we know it. A metaphysical fuel is you will.

"If I am right about her intentions, they will be looking for that." He filtered on, and then he laughed. "Ah, of course. The Breathe of Creation."

There was an alternative. Zero calculated it. "Doctor, if I may, the khalai also possess a unique substance. The Khaydarin Crystals of their homeworld of Aiur are infused with enormous power. Some believe it may even be the power of the three goddesses. They might also be a target."

"True, but the Khalai are immensely powerful." said Clay. He clasped his hands together in front of his chest. "They are well guarded. And any confrontation with them would be disastrous.

"No, the Tal'darim are the easier target.

"You must never get so carried away with one calculation that you forget outside factors. Remember that mathematics only account for the material universe. They cannot help us understand entities that exist independent of physical matter. When such an entity acts, it sends ripples through the universe. These ripples naturally disrupt the math in a thousand locations.

"If such entities did not exist it would be possible to calculate every possible event. So long as you had a large enough supercomputer. However, they do. Thus there is always a margin for error.

"If you can learn to account for that margin, to learn the math of such entities, you will be a credit to my work."

"Yes, Doctor." said Zero.

"Now, what to do about this." said Clay, turning away. "Zero, analyze all possible responses we could take to this."

Zero did so. "As you wish, Doctor. Analyzing." It paused. "The simplest possible solution to this equation would be to do nothing. Washu, Mikamo and Naja are not experienced at infiltration or ship to ship combat. There is a high possibility they will lose their lives."

Clay glanced back with a grin. "A good option. What are the others?"

"We might report this action to the rest of the faculty." said Zero. "In which case, Washu would be recalled. However, given the Emperor's support, it is highly likely they will not face consequences. They may have received unofficial support. The Tal'darim are not popular, and many wish to analyze the Breathe of Creation."

"And the other?" asked Clay.

"A third option would be to pursue them." said Zero. "Doing so would be dangerous, but it would give us the opportunity to effect their mission. We might confiscate any samples they take of the Breathe of Creation. Or, should they become overwhelmed, we might give an early warning of the event to Jurai.

"This would allow them to mobilize against the Tal'darim more quickly. It would be a credit to your reputation."

Clay turned fully around now, and his smile widened. "I like that last one. I am a man who prefers to be in charge of his own destiny. Ready the ship. We leave in pursuit of Washu at once."

"With your permission, Doctor, I will continue to analyze the situation. It may be best if I present new alternatives as they appear." said Zero.

"Do so." said Clay. "If all goes well, Washu will finally be out of my hair. And I will have gained samples of the Breathe of Creation."

Zero wondered what would happen if it encountered an entity.

* * *

It was a large world of jungles and rivers. Washu looked at it, sensing all the lifeforms on the surface. No sign of any ships just yet, but that could change.

"So that's Bel'Shir huh?" asked Mikamo from the pilot seat. He was now dressed in an orange jumpsuit and had a pistol at his side.

Washu leaned back in her seat and began to type. Focusing on the energy of the jewel in her gauntlet, she began to channel it into a field. Then she adapted that field of power for her own ends.

"It's nice." said Naja, from where she was manning the sensors. "I'd love to visit a jungle world like this on vacation sometime. Maybe we could get some souvenirs or something."

"I don't know." said Mikamo. "Jungles look nice in movies, but they aren't much fun in real life. Even without the Tal'darim."

"Quiet, both of you." said Washu. "I need to initiate my cloaking field."

She pressed the activate button. A hum went through the ship. They heard and felt it, and the universe outside the cockpick was now seen through a filter.

"How does this work?" asked Mikamo.

Washu was glad he asked and smiled widely. She loved being able to brag. "It's my newest invention! The cloaking field makes use of ocular distortion technology to make us invisible! It isn't based on any kind of traditional weaponry?"

"Why can't you patent this?" asked Mikamo.

"Same reason as my bags." said Washu. "I need to use one of my gems to hide us."

"How much power does this thing take anyway?" asked Mikamo.

"You do not want to know." said Washu.

"Washu," said Naja, "we've got an incoming Tal'darim carrier."

"I see it." said Mikamo.

Washu looked and saw the vessel approaching. And there were others with it. It was a huge thing, like a bug. There were many glowing violet lights coming from it. She could sense it had a lot of power.

"Wow, that's a real-life Tal'darim ship!" said Naja. "Very few people have seen them and lived to tell the tale! I've got to take some photos! Mikamo, does this ship have a recording device?"

"Let's just hope that we can slip by." said Mikamo. "If this doesn't work we'll be blown up in seconds." He looked really worried, actually. Washu reached out and put a hand on his shoulder.

"Relax, Mikamo. There is no way we'll end up getting shot down." said Washu. "They don't even know we're..." Those ships were getting closer very quickly, weren't they? "...here..." This was unforeseen, wasn't it?

"They're on a collision course for us!" said Naja.

"Give me the controls!" said Mikamo.

The ship dodged and weaved under the vessel, before spinning over another. It came within inches of several of the fleet. But they didn't get a scratch. She looked up at Mikamo.

"Mikamo, that was awesome." said Naja.

"Mikamo, I'm impressed." said Washu. "Where did you learn to fly like that?"

"Like I said, I wanted to be part of the Galaxy Police." said Mikamo, breathing in relief as he righted the ship. "We're past the outer defenses. Where do you want me to touch down?"

"Hang on a moment while I scan the area." said Naja. She pressed several buttons. "I'm detecting several dozen large power surges throughout the planet. That's likely where the Breathe of Creation is. Take us down to these coordinates. That area is the least populated of them all.

"Once we're down there I'll begin scanning for the sites. I have all the instruments we'll need."

"I hope you know what you're doing, Naja." said Mikamo. "I've had one too many close calls in this trip already."

"Don't worry so much, Mikumo." said Washu. "The worst is probably behind us by now."

And then the engines flickered. Mikamo pressed the buttons. "What the... our systems are dropping!" Even as he spoke, the ship began to descend at a breakneck pace toward the jungle surface.

"Hmm," said Washu, "funny. I thought I'd fixed that thing."

"What?" said Naja. "What thing?!"

"Well see when I first tested the cloaking shield it kind of screwed with nearby equipment. I kind of figured I'd fixed the problem. Still, this is progress, at least.

"I mean the system shutdown didn't happen until minutes afterward." Washu paused and realized that the two of them were staring at her. What was it she said?

"Why didn't you say that before?" asked Mikamo.

"You didn't ask." said Washu. "And I thought I fixed it!"

"Washu, for the greatest scientific genius in the universe you are an idiot!" said Naja.

"Hang on," said Mikamo, "I'm going to try an emergency landing. Washu, can you use those gems to soften our descent."

"Hey, that's a pretty good idea." said Washu. She began to type quickly, calculating one thing after another. As they neared the ground, Mikamo steered them up.

And then they crashed. They smashed through the trees, sliding across the landscape. The whole craft shook beneath the force as they slid forward. They left a trail of destruction behind them.

Then they hit something, and Washu was thrown from her seat. Landing hard everything went black.

* * *

 **Author's Note:**

Chapter eighteen is up. When I first included Mikamo and Naja I was expecting them to be borderline cameos. I like the power trio they've formed with Washu, though.

Those of you with an understanding of the OVA's may have an idea of where this is heading.


	19. Stranded on Bel'Shir

**Chapter Nineteen: Stranded**

Mikamo's ship had plowed a huge trench in the earth. The top had been snapped in half, sitting atop a pillow of torn underbrush and ruined trees. Washu, Naja, and Mikamo stared at the utter wreckage in shot. The dust had only started to clear after they stumbled out into it, and they were still taking in it all.

"Well, this is… irreparable!" said Naja. "My ship!" said Mikamo. "Don't be so down; I can take care of this. I just need a bit of time." said Washu.

"Time is something we don't have, Washu." said Naja, wiping the dust off her face. "Even if they didn't detect us falling out of the sky, someone is sure to have noticed our descent.

"Mikamo-"

"My ship!" said Mikamo.

"Yes, your ship is broken." said Naja. "But right now we need to get all the basic survival supplies together. Where did you put them?"

"My ship!" said Mikamo. Naja sighed. "I think we'd better handle this ourselves, Washu. Come on."

Washu and Naja entered the ship and immediately looked for the emergency supplies. As it turned out, Mikamo had put them in a closet. The closet was labeled: Emergency Supplies.

Helpful.

As they sorted through them, Naja drew up a huge gun. She cocked it.

"Wow, what's that?" asked Washu.

"A Galaxy Police heavy repeater. Generally used against high profile space criminals." said Naja, eyeing down the sights. "It's also food for suppressing fire. It was built by the Kuramitu's in case of a war with Jurai."

"Really?" asked Washu, surprised.

"Yes." said Naja. "You don't imagine people aren't afraid of Jurai invading?"

"Well, I'd always assumed Jurai pretty much-owned everything anyway. So it was a moot point." said Washu.

Getting together the equipment they made their way out to where Mikamo was, now armed. He was still standing in that same place, eyes wide, and mouth open. "My ship!"

"Come on Mikamo, we need to get out of here before the Tal'darim show up." said Naja, offering him a pack.

Wait, she wanted to leave? "Get out of here to where Naja? The entire planet is hostile to us. If we get to civilization, we'll be shot. We don't know how to run the Tal'darim spacecraft, and we won't have time to learn.

"No, we need this vessel."

"And what are we going to do to keep the Tal'darim from wiping us out?" asked Naja in irritation. "That crash will have been seen for miles. They'll find us."

"Give me a minute, will you." said Washu, opening her console. She began to type busily, analyzing and putting hypothetical parts together. When the parts she didn't have didn't work, she created new ones' from available materials in her mind. "Let's see, analyzing. Redistribute a bit of power here, arrange light emitters. Alright, I've got a way to disguise this entire area so the Tal'darim won't even notice the crater!"

"My ship!" said Mikamo.

And then out of the woods came hundreds of Tal'darim. They were huge, faceless creatures with only eyes and nostrils. They wore black armor and rushed at them, red psi swords blazing from their wrists. "Here is the crater! Kill all the intruders in the name of Amon! Burn their profane vessel!"

Washu flinched. Something was very familiar about this. So familiar that she hardly noticed the world or her deadly peril. That name resounded with her. "Amon? Well that name is-"

Naja pulled her aside as waves of psionic energy blasted where they had been moments ago. They hid in the underbrush as blasts landed around them. "My ship!" said Mikamo, who had been pulled aside.

"Mikamo, snap out of it." said Naja. "The Tal'darim are going to blow it up anyway. We've got to get out of here before-"

 **"MY SHIP!"** roared Mikamo.

He snatched the repeater from Naja and charged out firing while screaming at the top of his lungs. The Tal'darim flinched and promptly charged. In the opposite direction. As fast as they could.

Washu looked in surprise as the Tal'darim fled before a barrage of shots. As they fled into the underbrush, Mikamo halted. He opened fire into it, screaming at the top of his lungs.

"Goddesses above, what is he doing?" asked Naja.

"I don't think those Tal'darim were professional soldiers." said Washu.

"But how?" said Naja. "They shouldn't have run just like that."

"Hang on." said Washu, opening her console. Checking through it, she blinked. "Oh, that's how. The repeater is specifically designed for suppressive fire. As part of that design is unleashes a psionic pulse designed to demoralize the opponent.

"Protoss are super psionically sensitive, so they were extra vulnerable."

Mikamo came back, looking exhausted. He glared at her and threw the gun to the ground. "You broke my ship Washu! I built that thing from scratch! I oversaw the construction personally, and you got the entire thing blasted to pieces!"

"I can fix it!" said Washu quickly.

Mikamo paused. He eyed her suspiciously. "You can?"

"Yes." said Washu. What was he getting so worried about? It was just a ship.

"Exactly the way it was?" asked Mikamo.

"Better!" said Washu. "On the way here I worked out several improvements I could make easily."

MIkamo picked up the gun. "…Fine. But I want full control over any changes you make."

"Right, good." said Washu. "Now we need to gather some materials and rig up some illusions before the Tal'darim get back with their friends."

The process of gathering parts was a lengthy one, made worse, since hey didn't actually have everything they needed. So Washu had to transform some existing parts to jury rig a makeshift system. Not ideal circumstances, but challenges only made things more interesting.

Now they were sitting in the cockpit as Washu worked. Naja was over by the console, working to fix the sensors.

"What exactly are you planning to make with all this?" asked Mikamo.

"I, Washu, am going to create a field that merges an artificial reality with normal reality." said Washu as she began to put the equipment together. "It's a theory I developed a while ago, and now I'm confident I can make it real. By manipulating an infinite number of possible universes, I will transpose this dimension with one where we never crashed! No one will ever notice!"

"Can you make it in the next five minutes?" asked Naja, from where she was fiddling with the sensors.

"Probably, why?" asked Washu.

"Because I just got the sensors back online and we've got a Tal'darim Vessel coming this way." said Naja.

Washu went suddenly still. "Oh damn." And she began to work. Work harder and faster than she ever had before. She melded devices together, put them in place, and began the final steps. "Okay, okay, you can do this. Work, work, work, work.."

"They're almost here." said Naja. "They'll have a visual in 5, 4, 3, 2-"

Washu pressed the button and prayed it would work. "And done!"

The gem she had set at the center of the device flared to life. As it did, there was a wave of light. The Tal'darim vessel came over the hill and looked down at them. But it didn't fire. Washu made her way to the view and saw two things.

On the one hand, she saw pure jungle, undisturbed. On the other, the trees neared them and melded with the ship. So on the one hand, Washu was floating over a forest. On the other, she was in a ship in the middle of a trench. It was disorienting. And for someone looking from the outside, they wouldn't even notice the ship.

Maybe. Hopefully.

As the Tal'darim vessel flew off, Washu prayed they weren't just going back for reinforcements.

"That was quick." said Mikamo.

Washu began to make adjustments. She wanted to make it, so people inside the field weren't bothered. Existing in two different realities at once was annoying. "Not my best product, but I'll have to work out the kinks later."

"We might not have later. Thanks to you." said Mikamo.

"Okay, okay, Mikamo! I get it!" said Washu in frustration. "I didn't think things through! I'm sorry; I just sometimes get so excited about something that I overlook things."

"We noticed." said Naja.

Mikamo sighed. "Fine. I accept your apology. Now we need to think."

Naja paused. "So what now? We wait for repairs?"

"Not yet." said Mikamo. "Washu, you stay here and get my ship working again. Naja and I are going to get the Breathe of Creation."

Naja stared at Mikamo. "Your kidding. We were almost shot down!"

Mikamo sighed. He sat down in the captain's chair and brushed his hair out from in front of his face. "Yes, and I refuse to let all this trouble be a complete waste. We should do both at once."

Naja looked at the sensors. "Well, there is a large energy signature akin to the Breathe of Creation. We could walk there and check it out. It would only take a day or two.

"But, shouldn't all three of us go, though?"

"No." said Mikamo. "We need to get the ship up and running as quickly as possible. Once we have it running, we need to leave immediately. If the two of us get caught by the Tal'darim, it won't do us any good to have Washu with us.

"If we get caught, we're dead."

Washu realized he was right. "Mikamo is right. Besides, someone has to make sure the shield doesn't fail. Don't you worry, I'll have all this up and running right quick. It'll be fine."

"So we're going to make use of stealth to get the Breathe of Creation?" asked Naja.

Mikamo pulled up a pack. "In theory." He tossed it to her. "Here, catch."

"What's this?" asked Naja, struggling to hold it.

Mikamo smiled. "High-grade explosives. Extra ammunition. Grenades. Oh and some sensor equipment too."

"Why do you have all this stuff?" asked Naja. "What, do you want to be an action hero?"

"I like to be prepared." said Mikamo. Then he slapped a new clip into his gun.

Naja and Mikamo left soon enough. And Washu was left to work with the machines. It was probably for the best. She'd had enough social interaction for the day.

"Well, it looks like I'm on my own." said Washu.

Still, she couldn't help but feel like she was being watched.

* * *

Zero had been analyzing the situation. As they emerged into the space around Bel'shir, it looked up to where Doctor Clay was sitting. The Doctor was tapping his foot impatiently. Zero desired for him to be at ease.

"Doctor Clay, we've come into orbit." said Zero. "Our stealth unit appears to be disguising our approach from the Tal'darim sensors."

"Keep an eye on the readings, Zero." said Clay. "I have tested this device for months, but there are usually a great many kinks to work out.

"If need be we'll drop out of stealth and flee the system.

"Now, can you get a reading on the tracker you planted?"

"Yes Doctor." said Zero, turning its attention back to the screen. "It appears that Washu has crashlanded on Bel'Shir. The Tal'darim are searching the surface for something. However, my sensors indicate…" Zero felt something. A confusion. "This is highly irregular."

'What is it?" asked Clay.

"It appears that Washu's ship has both crashlanded and created a huge crater." said Zero. "And yet at the same time is not there. It appears she is making use of time-space distortion."

"Reality warping tech?" asked Clay. "But that would require a truly massive amount of energy. There is no way Washu has developed such a generator and not patented it.

"No, she must be making use of some source we do not have the power to duplicate."

"What would you have us do?" asked Zero.

Clay smiled. "Continue to observe the situation. I want a clear reading on what the Tal'darim are doing. Also, keep an eye out for any openings. I want to know if we might be able to access some of the Breathe of Creation ourselves."

"Understood Doctor. Beginning scans." said Zero.

Zero existed to serve Doctor Clay. It had been programmed with certain parameters. However, the law of unintended consequences had taken hold. Zero was performing its duties. However, it was not performing those duties simply because it was programmed. Did it have another motive for its actions?

No. Its purpose was to serve Doctor Clay. Nothing else was relevant.

It would analyze this reaction, however. It might prove useful to the doctor's research.

* * *

 **Author's Note:**

Sorry, this chapter was delayed. I had to work on some other things for a bit. Enjoy.


	20. Escape from Bel'Shir

**Chapter Twenty: Escape from Bel'Shir**

Mikamo and Naja made their way through the forests of Bel'Shir, hearing the calls of animals. Several times they nearly stumbled into webs of spiderlike creatures. They also saw snakes and other monstrosities.

As they walked, Naja held her gun. She was trying to distract herself. "I hope Washu is alright." she said.

Mikamo looked in a bad mood. She didn't blame him. "Washu is in far less danger than we are. Why did I agree to this?"

Naja blinked. "You suggested it. I just wanted to go home."

"Okay, yes, but then the whole thing would have been a waste." said Mikamo.

Naja smiled. "There's your answer."

Mikamo drew out a sensor and pressed several buttons. "Okay, we're only a few miles from the Tal'darim facility. Do you have the storage cubes?"

"Yes." said Naja, drawing one out. "Each of these should be able to hold a few hundred gallons each. A fraction of what's held in these cubes could be enough for my experiments."

"Well, let's try to be prepared." said Mikamo. "If there is one thing I've learned today, it's that super geniuses overlook things."

"Well I guess I can't argue with that." said Naja.

On they went, until at last, they came to a ridge. Mikamo crouched low and crawled to the edge, while Naja did the same. Looking over it, Naja saw a gas mining facility. But you'd never seen a mining facility this elaborate. The means of extraction were gilded, with beautiful designs on them.

Designs which showed many duels between protoss. The victors stood triumphant as the losers were cast into the flames. And all around these designs, the Tal'darim worked. There were guards all over the place.

"Here we are." said Mikamo.

"That's pretty well defended." said Naja. "How are we supposed to get in there?"

Mikamo got out of sight and raised his gun. "Alright, let me think. The mine is under pretty heavy guard right now. But if they thought an attack was coming from the opposite, they might respond to it."

Naja shook her head. "That will never work."

Mikamo looked in surprise. "Why not?"

Naja sighed. "The Breathe of Creation is sacred to the Tal'darim. Those guards are elites. They're not allowed to leave the geyser for anything." She looked over the mine, and then she noticed a large series of canisters being readied for shipment. They were guarded, but not as heavily. "What about there? There is a shipment there."

Mikamo looked. "…Those guards might leave I guess." He drew out a storage cube and drew out several high-grade explosives. "I'm going to sneak in and set up a distraction. "Wait here."

"How exactly are you going to do that?" asked Naja. "And why are you so confident?"

"Look, before Mom forced me to go to the academy, I was training for the Galaxy Police." said Mikamo. "I wanted to be in the special forces. And I used to hunt some of the most dangerous animals in the galaxy.

"Trust me."

And then he stole away into the trees. Naja waited there, observing as more of the canisters were readied. If that shipment went out before Mikamo finished they would have wasted their time.

Then he came back. Naja looked at him. He was breathing heavily as he lay next to her. "So you're back."

"Yes." said Mikamo.

"I didn't notice a distraction." said Naja.

"You don't suppose that I'd be there when the distraction is made, do you?" asked Mikamo.

"So what now?" asked Naja.

Mikamo drew out a detonator. "When I push this button they'll probably move away from the materials. We'll move straight to the vespene stockpile and grab as much as we can. Then we run for it.

"If they leave a guard, we'll use our guns. Set them to incapacitate. I don't want to kill anyone. If they leave more than one guard, we abort and find another way. You understand?"

"Yes. " said Naja. She switched the weapon.

Mikamo sighed and raised the deteonator. "Good. 5, 4, 3, 2, 1."

He pressed the button. A massive explosion rose up throughout the trees opposite to them. Many protoss were thrown from their feet, clutching their ears. Cries of distress came out and then gunfire was unleashed. Numerous beams of light plowed into the workers and guards. Many of them were knocked flat, spasming.

"That's some distraction." said Naja.

Mikamo grabbed her hand and pulled her over the ledge. "Come on!"

Even as they ran the guards rushed to seek out the attackers. Many of them fell spasming. Even those that stood guard on the mine took cover.

But one guard did remain by the shipment. He summoned two blades. "Intruder! You shall not!"

Mikamo opened fire into him. A shield of red light deflected the assault, and he went at Mikamo with his sword. Naja fired into him, even as his blade cut Mikamo's gun in half.

Then Mikamo drew out a hilt. From it shot a whip of yellow light that he lashed around the protoss' arm. Pulling him down, Mikamo slammed the protoss to the ground and pressed a button. A surge of energy went through it, and the guard collapsed. "Get out the storage cubes and give me your gun."

Naja obeyed and began to fill the cubes with the canisters of Breathe of Creation. As she did, she looked to Mikamo. "What did you do?"

He was breathing heavily. "I set up auto turrets for on incapacitate. It should keep them occupied."

Naja and Mikamo worked as quickly as they could. But now the more elite guards were appearing. The attacks by the auto turrets were deflecting off their shields as they marched in. Very soon they would break them and then the distraction would be gone.

They finished loading it.

"We've got it." said Mikamo. "Now come on."

As they ran, however, several other guards came to the canisters. "Intruders! Our enemies have stolen the Breathe of Creation! After them!"

The last of the auto turrets went silent.

And they sprinted into the trees. They ran as quickly as they could, stumbling over roots and sprinting. Even as they ran, however, Naja raised a sensor. There were Tal'darim coming after them, and fast.

"Wait, wait, we can't outrun them Mikamo." said Naja. "Let's get into the trees. They'll overshoot us."

Mikamo nodded. Together they scaled upwards. Even as they did, however, the Tal'darim came in beneath them. They rushed on past, blades readied. Both of them breathed in relief.

"It's only a matter of time before they start scanning the forest." said Mikamo.

Naja smiled and drew out one of her inventions. "Don't worry. I've been planning this trip for a while. I invented a device meant to naturally bypass sensors. It sort of naturally screws with them when they come near." She activated it.

Mikamo nodded. "Either way, we've got to keep moving. I'd hate to think what kind of trouble Washu could be in."

Mar'dara heard communication after communication. As she gave orders, he felt the Second Ascendant gazing at him from behind. Mar'dara tried to look busy, and hoped that Malrath decided that the failure was someone else's responsibility.

Whoever Malrath held responsible was as good as dead.

"So," said Malrath, looking up from his consoles, "our intruders have launched a raid. One very near to the location where we believed they had crashed."

"Yes, Second Ascendant." said Mar'dara. "It seems they must be somewhere in that area."

"And yes all our scans and attempts to scour the region have failed." noted Malrath. "I have a sublime thought. It may be that our enemies have devised some means of counteracting our sensors. And with it, the ability to devise an elaborate illusion.

"All our scanners indicated that there was a collision at the first coordinates. And yet when we have found no sign of them. Our instruments are not usually so imprecise."

"I could begin a ground search if you wish." said Mar'dara. "The locals might have given us the wrong coordinates. With enough time we will find them."

"Time is something we don't have." said Malrath. "There is no sense in taking chance. Helmsman, signal the fleet and blast the entire valley into oblivion.

Mar'dara looked up in horror. Was he serious? "But some of those trees are thousands of years old! And many of our people live in that valley!" "And soon their dust will mingle with the enemies of Amon." said Malrath. "A worthy death. Position the fleet!"

"I request permission to relocate our people, then." said Mar'dara.

Malrath sighed. "Very well. My patience for the evacuation will last as long as my weapons are charging."

Mar'dara got to work.

* * *

Washu was working when Mikamo and Naja got in. They fell to the floor, panting in exhaustion. Washu didn't look up, instead of trying to do the finishing touches. "Mikamo, Naja, you're back." she said,

"Yes." said Mikamo. "Are we repaired?"

"Not yet." said Washu, still typing. "I'm still working out the details. We've got another problem, though."

"What is it, now?" asked Naja.

"There is a large fleet of Tal'darim Warships preparing to fire on this valley." said Washu.

"What?" said Mikamo. "Did they detect us?"

"Of course not." said Washu. "If they did they would be sending ground forces to this location. They would have to evacuate the people. My inventions never fail."

"Except when they do." said Mikamo, making his way to the console. "Can you get me shields?"

"Already have." said Washu. "It won't stop a bombardment of that scale, though."

"How soon can you get ready to move?" asked Mikamo.

Washu shrugged, feeling a bit calm. "It'll be a few minutes."

"We don't have a few minutes, Washu." said Mikamo.

"The gems." said Naja.

"What?" said Mikamo.

"We're only using one of the gems right now." said Naja. "Can we use it to somehow boost shield power?"

"Be my guest." said Washu, putting the finishes touches on this system. She drew out a gem and tossed it to Naja. "Mikamo, get ready to get us out of here. If we don't die in the bombardment, we'll have to leave in a real hurry."

Washu didn't have time to be worried. She was too busy.

Mar'dara walked extra slowly as she made her way up to the Second Ascendant. Every moment she delayed meant another second for the evacuation to continue. He eyed her expectantly as she stood before him.

"Well?" asked Malrath. "Have you lost the power of speech, slave?"

"Second Ascendant Malrath, our weaponry is prepared to fire." said Mar'dara.

"Excellent." said Malrath. "Open fire." "The evacuation isn't complete." said Mar'dara.

Malrath motioned. Mar'dara felt the pull of psionic energies and looked up. The Tal'darim fleet opened fire in unison. Beams of red energy descended with a light bombardment to the valley. It hit it, and in a single instant, the entire valley was consumed in fire. Everything there was dead. Any transports or people remaining there had been consumed.

"On the contrary. All remaining villagers have been successfully evacuated." said Malrath in amusement. "The rest no longer exist."

And then Mar'dara noticed something. There was a patch of ground which was exactly the same as it had been. She blinked. "That area is completely untouched."

"So it was. Almost as if it is part of another reality." said Malrath. "Focus all remaining fire on that area."

The ship had shuddered as the bombardment hit them. The shields had fizzled as Washu kept working. And then the outside changed to that of a glasses wasteland. Washu didn't have time to deactivate the last gem.

"Damn it!" said Mikamo, typing. "We can't take another hit like that; the shields are fried!"

Washu looked up in surprise. "You mean the gem broke?"

"No, it just had to pour so much energy in that the mechanism couldn't take it." said Mikamo. "Washu, are you done?"

"Yes, in a few moments I'll be ready." said Washu.

Mikamo looked at the readings. "In a few moments they'll fire another shot, and we'll be dead."

Naja got back. Mikamo looked to her. "Naja, set the gem to the engines."

"What?" said Naja.

"The fleet is positioned, so their shots are firing inward." said Mikamo. "If we go fast enough we should be able to slip past them before the shots fire! Now go!" Washu tossed her the gem, and she ran. It was probably their only shot. Which was really sad, she reflected as she worked. The sensors showed the weapons charging again.

They were probably going to die. "Come on, come on." said Mikamo.

"Mikamo, the odds of us surviving this is mathematically astronomical." said Washu.

"I'll make my own odds then." said Mikamo.

He began to reposition the ship. Washu had fixed the hull already, and soon they were facing. He typed busily, calculating coordinates as the charging on the weapons was complete.

"They're firing." said Mikamo.

Washu finished. "Engines done!"

Mikamo hit the launch button.

It was a one in a million shot, all things considered. If Mikamo made even one miscalculation in his launching coordinates, they'd all die. If Naja didn't get the jewel set in time, they wouldn't launch fast enough, and they'd all die. If Washu didn't get the engines online, or got something wrong, they'd all die.

Just getting into space was nigh impossible. And the odds only became worse when they would fly into space. Because they'd have to decelerate and the Tal'darim would likely pursue. All these calculations combined told Washu that they were not getting out alive.

Apparently, miracles were real.

Because they surged forward just in time to shoot under the descending beams of red light and surged past the ships. They were moving at a pace beyond comprehension. They shot into deep space as Mikamo engaged the thrust.

And then they were home free.

"We did it!" said Naja as she rushed in. "We made it out!"

"We're past!" said Washu. "This is amazing!"

She hugged Naja quickly. "And we're about to lose engine power, I'm plotting a course for an asteroid field." said Mikamo.

"What? Are you crazy?!" said Washu. "If our engines die in deep space the Tal'darim will blow us out of the sky." said Mikamo. "If we float into an asteroid field they'll probably give us up for dead."

"Yes! Because we will be dead!" said Washu. "At our present velocity and without shields we'll be battered to pieces!" This was so insane it went beyond the level of insane. "We've got nothing to slow us down!"

"We've still got weapon systems." said Mikamo. "Apply the last gem to them; we might be able to use them to slow ourselves down and blast any asteroids that come after us."

Washu could only assume that Mikamo's plan was to make the odds so high that the universe itself had to do a system reset. She tossed the last gem to Naja. "Applying gem to weapons systems. I hope you know what you're doing, Mikamo."

"I don't." said Mikamo. "I'm making this up as I go."

* * *

Zero read the observations. From there it looked to where Doctor Clay was reading great literature and sipping wine. "Dr. Clay, Washu's ship has exited the planet's surface. She appears to have taken shelter in an asteroid field, designated Revanscar. Her shields are destroyed, and the Tal'darim have given up the chase. Given this, it is highly likely that they will be obliterated."

"Good. Still, they may have gathered something of value." said Clay. "Plot a course to Revanscar, Zero. We'll see what we can salvage from the wreck."

Zero looked to the data. "What of the Tal'darim? They are still a factor."

"You needn't concern yourself Zero." said Clay. "A ship like ours could navigate the asteroid field. However, a fleet would fare poorly. At most we will contend with scout ships.

"Assuming they don't give them up for dead."

* * *

Mar'dara approached Malrash. They had destroyed the valley, and everyone in it and the enemy had gotten away anyway. Even so, they had gotten away to certain death. If they'd had the time to launch in a less risky fashion they might have escaped. "Second Ascendant, the enemy escaped our vessels despite the loss of their shields. However, our sensors indicated that their engines were on the verge of giving out. They have almost certainly been destroyed in the asteroid field."

"Pursue them." said Malrash.

Mar'dara paused. "But, Second Ascendant, the enemy is dead-"

"Have you seen the bodies?" asked Malrash.

"No.," said Mar'dara.

"Are you a prophet?" asked Malrash.

"No." said Mar'dara.

"Then take us in." said Malrash. "They have already demonstrated an ability to do the impossible. And even if their luck has run out, I want to examine the wreckage of their vessel.

There may be something of value within."

Mar'dara admitted that whatever secret had been used by them was worth discovering. She'd never seen anything deflect that kind of bombardment before. "Yes, Malrath. But we can expect some casualties."

"Our population has grown a great deal in the last few hundred years." said Malrash. "I'm sure I can find replacements."

Join the space fleet, Mar'dara's mother had said. You'll be able to see the universe and serve Amon. She'd much rather be farming crystals at this point.

* * *

 **Author's Note:**

And we've finally gotten off Bel'Shir.

This arc has been fun to write so far. It's been far more action packed than the Amon arc, and the different viewpoint is a refreshing change of pace.


	21. Several Kinds of Rescue

**Chapter Twenty-One: Several Kinds of Rescue**

A huge rock shot toward the cockpit as Mikamo manned the weapons.

"That's another asteroid." said Washu, not looking up from her screen.

There was a flash of light. Then the asteroid was blasted into a million pieces. The shards bounced off the hull. If just one of those pierced the outer shell they were all dead.

Fun. Fun. Fun.

"I know." said Mikamo, rubbing his eyes. He grabbed a cup and sipped it. Then he set it down and looked to Naja. "Goddesses damn it, I'm out of coffee. Could you get me some more Naja? I'd go myself, but someone has to run the weapons."

"Right, sure." said Naja.

She took the cup and left. Mikamo shuddered. He'd been doing this for hours, and he looked like hell. Washu probably looked just as bad, though. "So, how is the repair going?"

"Not so well." said Washu. "Our shields and engines are totaled. I'm having to repair them all from the ground up. I've set up some nanomachines on the job.

"Any problems with the weapon systems?"

"Hang on." said Mikamo. He pressed a number of buttons. The weapons fired and he used them to maneuver out of the way of a huge rock.

Washu was impressed. "Hmm, using the weapon systems as a makeshift propulsion system. Clever."

"It's either that or try to blow up every single asteroid." said Mikamo. "That would attract a lot of attention and might overload them."

Naja got back in and offered them coffee. "I'm back."

"Thanks." said Washu, taking the cup. She sipped it. Coffee was truly a gift from the heavens.

"So how are the charts I made working for you." asked Naja.

"Well…" said Mikamo. "They seem pretty accurate. You're pretty good at using scanners, aren't you?"

"Yeah, well, that sort of thing is my specialty." said Naja.

"Right, so where are we?" asked Washu.

"Well, I estimate that if we continue as we are now, we'll be out of the asteroid field in… three weeks." said Mikamo.

"Ugh… I'll keep working." said Washu."I've gotten more than I bargained for on this trip." said Mikamo.

Both of them laughed. It was stress relief. "Join the club." said Washu.

"Actually, as long as we're here we need to talk about the Breathe of Creation." said Naja..

"What about it?" asked Mikamo.

"Well how are we going to get it back home secretly?" asked Naja.

"What does it matter?" asked Washu.

"It matters a lot." said Naja. "My whole plan was to secretly steal some of it, and that went south when the shield generator failed. Now we've got the Tal'darim hunting us.

"If we just head back home and start using it, the Tal'darim might start a war."

"Good point." said Washu. "We'll need to be secretive about all this."

"Once we get out of here I'll get into communication with my family." said Mikamo. "We'll be able to send the stuff to some secret labs. No one will hear about any experiments we do with it.

We should all agree though that we won't use any of the Breathe of Creation in the academy."

"That sounds fair." said Washu. "The last thing I want to do is get people hurt.

"Still, how are we going to divvy it up?"

"Let me think." said Naja, drawing out the cubes. "Alright, we've got three cubes of the stuff. So one each."

"You can both share mine." said Mikamo. "Consider it my contribution."

Washu looked up. "Aw, that's so sweet of you."

On a whim, she leaned forward and kissed him on the cheek.

"Heh, no problem." said Mikamo.

* * *

Yet another asteroid was annihilated before it could hit the ship. It was neither the first or the last. And not all of them had been destroyed in time.

Mar'dara looked up to where Malrath sat in his throne. "Second Ascendant Malrath, Revanscar is massive. The enemy entered it at an incredible speed. Given the amount of damage we've sustained they were probably destroyed."

"Perhaps they were." conceded Malrath. "But I sense something. A power untapped.

"Continue the search."

"As you command." said Mar'dara.

And continue it she did. Mar'dara peered at the instruments. She flinched as she felt something hit the shields. And then she saw something. "…Second Ascendant!" "What is it?" asked Malrath.

"I've got something. A ship." said Mar'dara.

"Is it them?" asked Malrath.

Mar'dara shook her head. "No, it is a different kind. Look here."

Before them on the screen appeared a large white ship. The front of it was the form of a naked woman, and her tresses led into the rest of the ship. Malrath rose from her seat and walked forward. "…The shape of a human female, is it?"

"Should we attack?" asked Mar'dara.

"No, pretend as though we haven't noticed them." said Malrath. "But keep an eye on them.

"What would such a vessel be doing so deep in the Koprolu Sector? Humans have no business here."

"Scavengers perhaps?" mused Mar'dara.

"Possible. But that vessel is far too fine." said Malrath. "No, I believe they are connected with our quarry. Send out obsevers to follow them, and then prepare to bring the fleet out of the field."

"Thank you, Second Ascendant." said Mar'dara.

And then Malrath gave another order.

Zero paused for a long moment. The scanners did not lie. It turned its sensors toward Dr. Clay. "Dr. Clay, the protoss are moving out of the field."

Clay was silent for only a moment. "Did they detect us?"

"I do not know." admitted Zero. "However, given how quickly they are leaving, it is possible that they did."

"Explain, Zero." said Clay.

"We are obviously no scavengers, Doctor." said Zero. "It is possible they believe we are working with Washu. If so, they may hope to keep us watched until such a time as we meet with them."

"And you don't believe they cut their losses?" asked Clay.

"Washu has demonstrated powers which we do not fully comprehend." said Zero. "It has likely interested the Tal'darim. I find it doubtful that they would let her go easily, given their profile."

"Very well then." said Clay. "Begin a scan for any observer drones we might find. Once they've cleared the asteroid, we'll find Washu. Our sensors are sure to detect her before theirs. And we will be able to destroy the observers afterward."

"As you wish, Doctor." said Zero.

* * *

They had moved to a smaller ship. Mar'dara watched as the rest of the fleet flew away toward the edge of the field. While they went steadily deeper. The enemy vessel went on, pursued by the observers.

"Second Ascendant Malrath, are you certain that we should be taking only this small vessel?" asked Mar'dara.

"Quite." said Malrath. "I find it unlikely that the enemy did not notice us. If they did, then they will surely be watching for our observers.

"They will not expect us to be trailing them directly, however.

"The Breathe of Creation is not as important as its theft. Once we know who is responsible for this, we will know who to strike at."

"As you command, Malrath." said Mar'dara. "They appear to be homing in on a signal." There was a flurry of shots, and the observers were obliterated. "They've just destroyed our observers."

"Which means they think we're lightyears away." said Malrath.

The trap was closing.

* * *

Washu noticed Naja sit up straight very suddenly. She repeatedly typed on her console and bit her lip. Then she looked up at them. "Mikamo, I'm picking up a non-Tal'darim vessel heading toward us. It's Doctor Clay's personal vessel.

"Do we send a distress signal?"

"No way." said Washu. "I am not letting that jerk get any credit for this."

"Swallow your pride, Washu." said Mikamo. "We need to get out of here as quickly as possible.

"Still, Clay may want to get even. If he asks we only have one storage cube of Breathe of Creation. We are also completely dead in the water with no hope of escape. We used the Breathe of Creation to supercharge our equipment. The gems do not exist.

"Got it?"

"Yes." said Washu. Where was he going with this?

"Good." said Mikamo. "Washu, you do the talking. Naja, record the conversation."

Washu nodded and went to the console. Sending out a transmission, she spoke; "Excuse me, unidentified vessel. We'd had a teensy problem with some malfunctions, and we were wondering if you could give us a hand."

And then Clay appeared on the screen, looking very smug. Washu did her best to look desperate. "I'm afraid that you have more than teensy problems, student Washu."

She tried to look surprised next. She must have done a good job, judging from his smile widened. "Clay? What are you doing here?"

"Tracking some disobedient students who decided to go on a joy ride to Bel'Shir." said Clay. "I wonder what the academy will think of this."

"Hey, this is legitimate scientific research." said Washu.

"Scientific research that requires provoking the Tal'darim." said Clay. "A very irresponsible experiment."

"Okay, fine. Can we talk about this later?" asked Washu. "We've been dodging asteroids."

"First, I would like to know how exactly you performed those extraordinary feats." said Clay. "It is nothing you could have invented; I know that much."

"Who says?" said Washu, more than a little offended.

"I say." said Clay.

"…Fine, I found that Breathe of Creation could be used to supercharge my equipment." said Washu. "I was able to use it to get out."

"All of it?" asked Clay.

Washu remembered her part. "No, I've still got a storage cube left."

Clay looked pleased. "Well then, that changes matters. Beam it over to my ship, and I will provide what help I can."

"What?" said Washu. "But we got this fair and square."

"I assure you, I will credit your exploits as is due." said Clay. "But I will not do anything until your illicit goods are sent back to me."

"But-" began Washu.

"I will not argue anymore!" snapped Clay. "You will be lucky if this fiasco doesn't get you expelled. Now don't test my patience any further."

Washu was offered a cube by Naja. She took it and warped it away. "Fine, fine, I'm using the beaming tool."

Setting it into the beamer, she sent the device across. Clay took it through the connection and smiled even wider. "Excellent. Zero, analyze contents."

"There is a large amount of Breathe of Creation within this cube, Doctor." said Zero.

"Good." said Clay. "Prepare to take us out of the asteroid field."

That son of a bitch. Washu became so angry she could hardly remember to look scared. "What? But what about us?"

"Oh yes, you." Clay pressed a button on his console. A device shot out of his vessel and began to blink. "Regrettably my ship is not a transport. It would be most inconvenient if I were to have you onboard. Instead, I will set a distress beacon that should draw any nearby fleets to your location."

"But that'll draw the Tal'darim right to us!" said Washu. "That will kill us!"

"Exactly." said Clay. "And once your ship is destroyed they will think the Breathe of Creation destroyed as well. I must thank you, Washu. This little stunt of yours will provide me the cover I need for some of my grandest experiments."

The screen winked out. Washu sent several transmission as Clay's ship began to fly away. "Clay! Wait! Damn you, Clay!"

She sighed.

"…Did you get all of that?" asked Mikamo.

"Yes. Yes I did." said Naja.

"Good." said Mikamo. He fired a shot that blew up the device Clay had sent out. "How long until we're active."

"I'll have basic power in a few hours." said Washu.

"Then get to work." said Mikamo.

She was pissed. She'd rip Clay in half herself when this was over.

And then another vessel, a Tal'darim vessel, shot into sight. A protoss appeared upon it with gleaming eyes. "I'm afraid that you don't have hours."

Washu blinked. "Who are you?"

"I am Second Ascendant Malrath of the Tal'darim." said Malrath. "And I think we both know that the Breathe of Creation cannot achieve such feats. If it could, we should have conquered this universe a thousand times over."

Washu sighed. "Erm…" This was bad. "You got me."

"Prepare to be boarded." said Malrath. "Cooperate, and I will grant each of you a swift death."

And then a bunch more protoss vessels warped in. But these were different. They were golden with blue lights. Less evil looking. "Hold where you are, Tal'darim." said a clear voice.

"The Khalai." said Malrath.

Another figure appeared on the screen, proud and noble. "I am Executor Aldaris. I have been sent by the Conclave to end this disturbance. You have violated the borders of our space. You have one chance, and only one chance, to power down your weapon systems and depart.

"Fail to comply, and you will be destroyed."

"The treaty gives us the right to pursue those who steal Breathe of Creation." said Malrath.

"Hey, we just gave everything we had to Clay." said Washu. "You were trying to rob us for our equipment that isn't part of the deal."

"Do you honestly expect me to believe you gave that fool everything you had-" began Malrath.

"Enough." said Aldaris. "I will not ask again. Depart immediately or be destroyed."

Malrath was silent for a long moment. "…So be it. Highlord Mal'lash will not be pleased. Alter course to secondary objective."

The Tal'darim vessel turned and departed at once. Washu sighed in relief, then looked to Aldaris. "Thanks for the assist. If you're not planning to blow us out of the sky, would you mind giving us a hand."

"So it shall be." said Aldaris. "There are some conditions of course. But we'll speak of them onboard this vessel while the repairs are underway."

"We're in no position to refuse." said Mikamo.

"I'm well aware." said Aldaris.

Escaping Tal'darim to be caught by Khalai. This was just not their day, was it?

* * *

 **Author's Note:**

And Aldaris makes his entrance, albeit a much younger Aldaris. Enjoy.


	22. The Judicator

**Chapter Twenty-One: The Judicator**

WIthin the protoss vessel were wide halls of a gold colored metal. Shining blue crystals lined the walls, and Washu found the whole place fascinating. She, Mikamo and Naja made their way through the halls, led by silent guards.

At last, the doors were opened, and they found Aldaris. He was tall, even for a protoss, and very lean. He sat in a chair at the end of a long table with his long fingers clasped together in front of his face. They were seated, and the guards walked out.

Food was served. However, it was very plain, unseasoned and cooked without any kind of adornment. Though the meat was actually very good, probably caught wild. These didn't come from any factory farm.

"I apologize for the nature of the food on board." said Aldaris. "We do not often entertain guests who are not protoss. And those who we do are usually prisoners."

"Oh, believe me, we don't mind. We've been through too much to care." said Mikamo.

Aldaris ate nothing. Washu remembered something. The protoss consumed the energies of the psionic crystals which grew on their worlds. He remained silent as they ate, and they finished quickly beneath his gaze.

"Now, perhaps we should speak." said Aldaris. "The Conclave is well aware of your efforts Washu. The disruption you have caused in the Jurai Academy is noted."

"Oh really?" said Washu, "Um well…" Was this going to be a lecture?

"The Conclave wishes to extend its congratulations." said Aldaris.

Washu raised an eyebrow. "Really?"

"Yes." said Aldaris. "We have thus far refused to involve ourselves in the galactic community. Our reasons are many."

"Might I ask what some of them are?" asked Naja.

Aldaris remained silent for a long moment. "…Ages ago, during the Aeon of Strife, the Conclave was founded by Ouros. We discovered the Khala that was gifted to us by the three goddesses. Using it, we were able to end the strife which had raged across our Empire.

"Unfortunately there were so who resisted this new union. They called themselves the Nerazim; they attempted to destroy the khala. In doing so, they caused vast psionic storms to rampage across Aiur. It took many centuries to repair the damage they caused, and our people were split ever after. They are Nerazim, the Dark Templar, and we are Khalai, the Light Templar."

"How do the Tal'darim fit into this?" asked Mikamo.

"They don't." said Aldaris. "They departed our world long ago to escape the Aeon of Strife. Their existence is a closely guarded secret among the Judicator Caste. Only those who need to know are told of them.

"Where was I?"

"The Nerazim and the Khalai." said Naja, an edge in her tone.

"Yes." said Aldaris. "There was a time, during the reign of Emperor Tenchi, that we were invited to send ambassadors to Jurai. The Conclave chose to do so.

"However, Jurai also sent the same message to the Nerazim."

"Well they are a foreign power-" noted Washu.

"They are an abomination." said Aldaris simply. "Their defiance of the will of the Goddesses led to untold destruction. They must be erased from the universe.

"Even so, we continued our association.

"But Jurai spoke to us as if we were a lesser race, and their depraved culture began to influence ours. A disaster was only narrowly averted."

"By disaster, you mean someone having a different opinion from your narrowminded ideology?" guessed Washu.

"How much research into our ideology have you done?" asked Aldaris in turn.

Washu paused. "Well… um… philosophy and social engineering isn't exactly my strong suit."

"And what is your strong suit then?" asked Aldaris.

"Well I'm good at the mechanical side of science, not so much the spiritual to be honest." said Washu, feeling like she was on the back foot.

"To look at the crude machine of existence alone leaves one ignorant of greater truths. Our war against the Nerazim is not of the flesh, but the spirit." said Aldaris. "The battleground is upon the physical plane. But the war between light and darkness is a neverending battle. The Nerazim raid our planets by darkness. They rob our colonies of supplies and assassinate members of the Judicator Caste. And no matter how many of them we hunt down, some always escape our nets."

"So what does this have to do with Jurai?" asked Naja.

"Everything." said Aldaris. "We Khalai are all equal under the law. We are given a role at birth, and how we perform that role determines if we are given greater trust. Jurai are reckless hedonists whose hubris has made them blind.

"They practice the barbaric tradition of marriage, and it is not unheard of for a single male to have a dozen wives."

"Well what do you have then?" asked Mikamo. His voice was guarded

"Those among us who are deemed worthy to pass on their genes are assigned a match." said Aldaris. "The union lasts only until conception. Those that are born of it are raised by the state."

"So, you don't have a family unit at all." said Mikamo.

"We are all of us brethren." said Aldaris. "Each as valuable as his use to the community as a whole.

"Even so, we understood that not all races shared our vision and continued our association. But Jurai's influence inspired our worker caste to defy us. Some of them began practicing the institution of marriage. Then the Emperor of Jurai attempted to convince us to legalize the practice.

"Faced with such a clear lack of respect, growing unrest, we cut all contact with Jurai."

"That seems like a bit of an overreaction." said Washu.

"We did not like the tone Jurai's Royal family took with us as well." said Aldaris. "To them, we were mere flawed creations who needed enlightenment."

"Look, not that this isn't interesting." said Naja. "But what does this have to do with us?"

"Everything." said Aldaris. "The Conclave's gaze extends far beyond the mortal realm. By their combined effort they are able to perceive things that mortals cannot. During this time they have become aware of you, Washu Hakubi."

Washu shifted beneath his gaze. She had the feeling that Aldaris was seeing into her. "Me?

"Well I'm flattered, my scientific genius is certainly-"

"A woman who the entire universe seems to revolve around." said Aldaris.

Washu blinked. "Come again?"

"The webs of fate are varied and complex." said Aldaris. "I do not comprehend them myself. But the Conclave has perceived that the possibilities of the universe have shifted. Entire destinies, the fates of whole worlds, have been spun together.

"And all of these things have combined to suit your purposes.

"You, an orphan of an unknown species who appeared on a distant planet. Possessing three gems of unfathomable power."

His voice held no admiration. It was merely a matter of fact. Washu liked this less and less by the moment. "Um, well I guess I am pretty brilliant."

"Do not mistake your fortune for accomplishment." said Aldaris. "Each one of us is given a task, a singular destiny that we must fulfill. We can choose to defy it and be destroyed, or fulfill it and gain enlightenment through service.

"We are all merely facets of a greater plan.

"Your genius was given to you freely. As were your abilities to manipulate matter. These are but gifts. Gifts to be used for the purpose assigned to each of us. For the advancement of plans beyond the measure of mortal minds."

Washu said nothing. For some reasons, she felt deeply ashamed and she did not know why.

At that moment a guard entered. He fell to one knee. "Judicator, we have the gems as you requested."

"The gems?" said Washu, looking up. The soldier brought them over to Aldaris who took them. "Give those back. They aren't yours!"

Aldaris held the three gems in his hand. His eyes turned dark as he looked at them. "…I can sense the power from these. This confirms what we already suspected.

"The gems have their uttermost source in the Goddess Washu, for whom you are named."

"Why did you come out here?" asked Washu.

"There are several reasons." said Aldaris. "First, to deny the Tal'darim their prize. If they were to gain possession of these devices, it could mean a new age of darkness for the universe. Assuming one could use them.

"Second, to provide you the means to achieve your goals.

"You will leave one of the containers of Breathe of Creation with us. I shall return them to the Tal'darim as a sign of goodwill. I will say that it was all you had. You will take the other and pursue your research."

"And you want the gems." guessed Washu.

Aldaris looked down at the for a moment. And then he handed them back to her. "No. You will take them back with you."

Washu blinked. This didn't make any sense. "…Wait a minute, you've got ultimate cosmic power in your hand, and you don't want it. You're just going to give it back? Not even make any conditions."

Aldaris leaned back in his seat and set both hands upon the table. "Long ago we protoss rose in defiance against the Xel'naga when they imparted the khala upon us. The wages of our rebellion was the Aeon of Strife.

"If harnessed these gems could be a powerful weapon. With their power, I could root out the hiding places of the fallen ones'. I could drive them out, spreading the light of the khala through the cosmos.

"But that was not their intended purpose.

"These gems were entrusted to you, Washu Hakubi, They are yours. Not mine.

The Conclave will not defy the goddesses again."

He'd been tempted, Washu realized. So had the Conclave. He'd come out here and saved them, and all the protoss had to do was reach out and take these. In time they could have harnessed their power. And they had given it up, simply because they believed that the Goddesses willed it.

"…I won't forget this, Aldaris." said Washu, feeling touched. Though she did not know why. "I mean it."

"Now, I would ask a favor of you as the Head of the Academy." said Aldaris. "The Conclave desires to send a student to the academy to learn there. In the interests of observing Juraian theories.

"I would be honored if you would accept him.

"Understand this is merely a request. You owe us no obligation."

Washu shifted. "Well I haven't officially taken my duties yet, but sure. I'll do what I can."

"Excellent." said Aldaris. "Karant, come forward."

Through a side door a short, bulky protoss entered. He wore brown robes, rather than white and nodded. "Greetings to you, I am Karan, an artisan of the Worker Caste. It would be my great honor if you would allow me to return with you to the academy."

"Sure, I don't have a problem with it." said Washu.

"Don't have a problem, Washu?" asked Mikamo sarcastically. "This is great. The academy has been trying to get someone to send students to the academy in years."

"All this is very well." said Aldaris. "However, we have more pressing matters to attend to. Dr. Clay has been tracked by the Tal'darim. It is very likely that they will strike against the Academy itself unless we act."

"Then what do you suggest?" asked Mikamo.

"As an Executor of the Judicator Caste I am empowered to act as an arbiter of the law." said Aldaris. "And since this region is under my jurisdiction Clay is mine to arrest." He closed his eyes, and they heard him speak. "Follow the tracker we placed on Clay's ship."

"When did you set up a tracker?" asked Mikamo.

"The Conclave sees far more than most." said Aldaris.

* * *

Mar'dara was not happy about how things were going.

What had started as a mere pursuit of Breathe of Creation had led them into Galaxy Police territory. Now Clay was heading toward their primary HQ.

"Malrath, we've come into orbit as you requested." said Mar'dara. "Clay appears to be heading for the Galaxy Police Headquarters."

"So the fool is taking the Breathe of Creation to them, is he?" asked Malrath.

"Shall I alert our fleets?" asked Mar'dara, praying the answer was no.

"No, don't be a fool." said Malrath. "The Galaxy Police Headquarters is far too well defended for us to take. Even if we managed it, Jurai would arrive and reinforce them.

"Still, perhaps we can use this.

"Mar'dara, you will contact my brother, Second Ascendant Nurdon and pretend to betray me. Say that you lost family in my barrage. He won't bother to check. Tell him that my fleets have been destroyed. I am planning to begin negotiations with the Galaxy Police for the return of the Breathe of Creation."

Mar'dara looked up in surprise. "That would viewed as weakness."

"Yes." said Malrath. "And he would love nothing more than to show me up. He always loved to demonstrate his superiority.

"Tell him."

Mar'dara nodded. "As you command."

Malrath arose from his seat and conspicuously walked out. Mar'dara turned back to her communications console and sent out a signal.

A figure appeared on the screen. A scarred protoss. "Who is this?"

"I am Mar'dara, an ensign of Third Ascendant Malrath." said Mar'dara. "I have news for Second Ascendant Nurdon of his actions."

He shifted. "…Very well, I will patch you through."

Second Ascendant Nurdon was a huge protoss, sitting on a throne and carrying a massive spear. His eyes flashed as he looked at her distainfully. "What news?"

"Your brother is a fool." said Mar'dara. "He has led our fleets to ruin in the asteroid field of Revanscar. Now only one small ship remains. In desperation, he has sunk to negotiating with the Galaxy Police. He is trying to get them to return the stolen Breathe of Creation willingly."

"And why are you telling me this?" asked Nurdon.

"His ineffectual bombardment succeeded only in killing members of my family." lied Mar'dara. "Although I'd also like a rank."

Nurdon radiated cruel amusement. "And so you shall have one." He stood. "Muster our fleets! We will destroy the Galaxy Police and obliterate all who stand in our way!" He looked back to Mar'dara. "You. If you wish for a rank, bring me Malrath's head."

"As you command." said Mar'dara. "Mar'dara out."

She cut the channel.

"Well done." said Malrah, directly behind the console. Mar'dara shuddered. How had he done that? "Now he will commit his forces, and we will wait. If he is victorious, I will challenge him to a Rak'shir while his forces are weakened. If he is defeated, our fleets can cover his humiliating route, and I can still challenge him to Rak'shir."

"What if Jurai is strong enough to destroy us all?" asked Mar'dara.

"We will account for that possibility when it comes up." said Malrath. "However this attack must be launched either way. The theft of the Breathe of Creation cannot go unpunished. "Oh, and once Nurdon engages Jurai, tell Mal'lash what he is up to."

Mar'dara blinked. He wanted to involve Mal'lash in this? "As you command."

Malrath stood up. "…Is there anything you want, by the way? A rank?"

"To live through this would be a start." said Mar'dara.

Malrath laughed. "Well, that I can assuredly grant you, milady."

* * *

Makum looked at Dr. Clay as he entered. The man looked very grim as he sat down, appearing very tired. He looked like it, but something about the act wasn't genuine. "You wanted to speak with me, Dr. Clay?"

"I have unfortunate news, Mr. Kuramitsu." said Clay. "It grieves my heart to say it but…"

Makum remained silent. The trailing off was for effect. "But what?"

"I'm afraid that your son, Mikamo is dead." said Clay.

"What?" said Makum. How had this happened? And how was Clay the first to know about it? The boy had requested the location of some Kuramitsu labs to deliver something. But he hadn't said anything else.

"He and his schoolmate, Naja Akari were lured out on a fool's errand by Washu Hakubi." said Clay. "To Bel'Shir. They managed to escape the orbit of the planet and reached Revanscar. But by the time I found them their life support had failed.

"All three of them were dead.

"With the Tal'darim closing in it was all I could do to salvage their findings." He drew out a cube and turned it. Out of it came a large canister. The Breathe of Creation."

Mikamo had stolen the Breathe of Creation. Was he insane? No, no Mikamo had had things planned out ahead of time. That was why he'd made all those requests; he'd meant to disappear. But Clay hadn't taken any of those precautions.

"…Were you followed." asked Makum.

"I assure you, all Tal'darim observers were disabled in the field before I even found their ship." said Clay.

Makum breathed in relief. "Good." He fell back in his seat. It hadn't set in yet, had it. His son was dead. He wouldn't see him, graduate. Wouldn't see him again. All because that idiot Washu had dragged him out on a fool's errand. "How am I going to break it to Mihone? I just…" He paused. "Do you have the bodies?"

Clay shifted. "Regrettably they had been irradiated with the energies of the Breathe of Creation. They seem to have performed some sort of maneuver using their precious cargo. It got them out of the atmosphere, but something went wrong.

"With proper research, we could give their sacrifice meaning."

Makum sighed. "Very well then-"

A message came in. "Admiral! We've got Tal'darim vessels closing in from all around! There is an entire fleet heading toward the Galaxy Police!"

A screen appeared, and line upon line of black and red ship emerged. They were approaching at attack speed. Makum glared at Clay. The idiot! "What? Impossible, I ensured no one could track me!" said Clay. "You were wrong." said Makum. 'Scramble all ships. Prepare to defend the station. Send a message to the Jurai Emperor and request immediate aid."

"If you would allow me to contribute my own vessel to the fighting-" said Clay.

"Do it!" snapped Makum.

Clay raised his communicator and move away. He must have thought he was out of earshot, but as Makum gave orders, he could hear the conversation. "Zero, take the vessel out and prepare to repulse the Tal'darim."

"Shall I await you, Doctor?" asked Zero.

"Of course not. A man of my prestigious nature should not risk such matters. My death would be an irreplaceable blow to the universe." said Clay.

"Understood." said Zero.

Makum frowned. Who was this Zero person? It didn't matter. Risks to Clay were something other people took while he reaped the benefits. Dr. Clay was a very intelligent man. But he was a reprehensible human being.

* * *

 **Author's Note:**

And chapter twenty-two is up.

So it occurs to me that Jurai and the Khalai are complete polar opposites in terms of culture. To the point where Jurai is actually less like the Khalai than the Nerazim. Given the nature of both, I thought I'd do a bit of worldbuilding.


	23. The Breaking of Fleets

**Chapter Twenty-three: The Breaking of Fleets**

There were many more detonations in the sky today. Dozens of ships flashed into vast spheres of light as their engines exploded. The sleek galaxy police cruisers dueled with the Tal'darim vessels. Beams of light fired between them, illuminating the void of space.

Zero maneuvered Clay's vessels, firing a series of mines. As calculated, a flight of Tal'darim fighters were caught by them. A brilliant flurry of explosions ensured and consumed them.

"The Tal'darim are coming in quickly!" said a fighter. "Where the hell are you, Shield Squadron!"

"This is Shield Squadron. We're coming in to help. Just sit tight, ladies."

The cruiser was tailed by a Tal'darim. Zero descended and calculated the most likely coordinates of the enemy. of the Tal'darim in a few moments. It factored in their likely response to it. Then Zero destroyed most of them in a moment. The others veered off but evaded her shots only narrowly.

At the same time, several Galaxy Police ships were blasted into oblivion.

"Thanks for the assist." said a female pilot. "Who are you?"

"This is Zero." stated Zero. "I have been assigned by Doctor Clay to assist in the war."

"Fine then, Zero." said the woman. "I'm Amame Yotsuga. Form up with the battleline and pick your targets."

"Understood." said Zero.

The battle line was formed, and the battle began. Zero utilized her weaponry to the best of its ability. Wherever she went, she was able to destroy multiple Tal'darim fighters.

"…Geeze look at that shooting." said a pilot. "How is she doing that?'

"Focus on the conflict, Kazuki. We've got bogeys to shoot." said Amame.

Various scattered chatter indicated that Zero was thought of as female. No doubt due to its voice. Zero was not entirely opposed to the idea. Nor could it find a good reason to dispute it. It was physically neither male or female. But galactic standards indicated that gender was not purely biological.

In addition, the definition of something was determined by those who observed it, to an extent. Given that the majority of those whom Zero had interacted with regarded it as female, did that mean it was so? Dr. Clay had not provided any instruction on the matter.

Zero put it from her mainframe. Instead, she focused on the battle at hand.

* * *

Makum observed the unfolding conflict. Although the Galaxy Police were putting up a good fight, they were losing. They were trained to fight pirates, not military superpowers. Their weapons were lighter. They had some heavy equipment, but there wasn't enough of it.

"Is there news from the outlying fleets?" he asked.

'They are returning now." said an officer. "We're scrambling everything we can, but they won't be ready to move for an hour at least."

"Which means it will be even longer before they get here." noted Makum. "What about Jurai?"

"The fleets are scrambling, but there has been a… delay." said the officer.

Makum looked up. "A delay?"

"The Jurai Fleet is having trouble mobilizing. They only just got together, and they are a long way off. They won't be here for several hours. Though they have dispatched some of the First Generation Jurai vessels."

First generation? The irreplaceable powerhouses of the Jurai Fleet? Makum supposed he ought to be grateful. But it was all the moot point, wasn't it? "At this rate, we won't have a few hours."

Malrath was within his inner sanctum. He had one of these in every ship.

It was a place of darkness with only one light. The Third Ascendant was meditating there, mists of Breathe of Creation all around him. She hesitated as she came before him.

His eyes opened and flared with an unworldly glow. Mar'dara hoped he wasn't angry. "Third Ascendant Malrath, the battle is going well."

The glow faded, and he rose. "So it would seem.

"It will only be a matter of time before the Galaxy Police outlying fleets return. As long as my fool brother doesn't destroy the HQ before we are done, our victory is assured."

"With respect, Third Ascendant, the Second Ascendant seems likely to win." said Mar'dara.

"Perhaps." mused Malrath. "I could join the battle and win it completely. But there would be little gain in that. Bring our ship into the fight alone. Tell the fleet to stay back.

"Then open a transmission to the Second Ascendant's flagship. I will speak with my brother."

Mar'dara nodded. They made their way back to the bridge, and there began to carry out their orders. Emerging from warp space, they came before the ongoing battle.

Malrath came forward and emitted an aura of fear, concealed behind the bluster. He opened a channel, and Nurdon appeared, looking very pleased. "Malrath, what is it?"

"Second Ascendant, my warriors and I are here to assist you in your war." said Malrath with false subservience.

"Assist? With one ship?" asked Nurdon.

"My fleets are scattered, however, I have come-" began Malrath.

"Your fleets are destroyed! And I have no use for a failure!" said Nurdon. "Ravager Squadron, turn and destroy him at once! Tell my warriors there will be a great rewarwhoeveromever brings me my brothers head!" Malrath cut the channel. "Draw us back at once to the rest of our ships."

He must have given some orders without her knowing. The crew obeyed without question. Soon they were flying through space, a large squadron of ships coming after them. They were not in range yet, but they were gaining.

Then they entered into a graveyard of vessels. The enemy slowed their approach to account for the obstacles. Then, out of the shadow of some debris came Malrath's fleet, charging weapons fire. Several warning shots ran past the enemy's bows.

"Open a channel to Ravager Squadron." said Malrath.

Mar'dara obeyed, and Malrath leaned forward. "As you can see, warriors, reports of my fleets decimation have been exaggerated."

The response was instant. "Third Ascendant, we have misjudged you."

"So you have." said Malrath. "Now you will remain where you are until I bid you involve yourselves. When my fool brother is destroyed, we will salvage the situation he has created."

"Understood." They said.

Malrath cut the channel.

"Are we truly going to base our plan off a defeat for the Tal'darim?" asked Mar'dara.

"You have insight, Mar'dara?" asked Malrath.

"This plan may lead to you becoming Second Ascendant. It may result in you gaining great power. But the Tal'darim as a while will be weakened." said Mardara. "Would it not be better to advance by winning a great victory for the Tal'darim while your brother is defeated?"

"And what would you suggest instead?" asked Malrath.

Mar'dara remembered all the reports from the observers. An idea came to her. "Jurai is mobilizing all their forces to come to the Galaxy Police Headquarters. But my observers tell me they were delayed. See now they are coming. Their formation is sloppy.

"Let us fall on them and destroy them.

"Weakened as he is, your brother may be defeated anyway. And if not defeated, he will be in no position to oppose you."

"An interesting concept." said Malrath. "Very well then, Mar'dara, it will be as you say." Then he opened a channel. "Hear me, warriors of the Tal'darim. The time has come for us to settle our rivalry with the Juraians! They believe that their goddess protects them!

"Let us show them that no feeble goddess can ward off the Tal'darim! "Hail Amon!"

"Hail Amon!" came the reply.

* * *

Nesshin was not in a good mood. When he'd ordered the invincible Jurai Armada readied he hadn't expected hours of delay. Neither had he expected to stand her as the ships slowly gathered from all over.

At last, Azaka came before him. "Emperor Nesshin, our fleet are gathered."

"Azaka, I am displeased with this lack of discipline. We have a crisis." said Nesshin.

"You have my sincerest apologies, Emperor." said Azaka.

"Give your apologies to the men and women who are likely dead now." said Nesshin, turning around to look at the fleet. "Set course for the Galaxy Police Headquarters at once."

The Jurain Fleet. Vessels forged from the cores of trees. Trees that provided the power and atmosphere for weapons and shields. It was a majestic sight. The original vessels had been made from the first generation of trees. Those that Tsunami blessed in ages past.

And now vessel that had been made after them had matched it. The second generation had been a pale shadow of the first. And the third generation had been in turn a pale shadow of the second. Nesshin meant to halt the degeneration there.

But for now he had a fleet with one of the first generation ships. It was his flagship, Lovers Embrace. There were several second generations and many third. The rest were in dry dock and could not be raised quickly.

"The fleet will be in need of reformation." said Nesshin. "It has fallen far from the days of my father, Tenchi.

"Pick the fastest course to the Galaxy Police HQ."

"That will bring us near to the Sargesso spaceship graveyard." said Azaka. "An excellent place for an ambush."

Nesshin considered the possibility. "It is a risk we will have to take. Any more delays and there may not be anyone left to save.

"Still, send scoutships ahead to scour the area ahead of us for any kind of attack."

"Understood." said Azaka.

The scoutships were sent and on they went. They entered into the graveyard of vessels, and Nesshin felt increasingly ill at ease. He hoped his daughter, Amame had survived so far. She'd been working in the Galaxy Police HQ before this point. And he also hoped that she wouldn't be made an orphan. His death was doubtful, he knew.

But doubtful was still a possibility.

"Emperor, we are detecting a small force of Tal'darim ships waiting in ambush." said Azaka. "They are pursuing our scouts even now."

"So we've found the trap." said Nesshin. "As I suspected. Descend and destroy them."

The Juraian ships lunged forward. And as they did their formation broke to pieces. They met the Tal'darim and exchanges of fire began. It was going in their favor, but not as much as it would have if the idiots hadn't lost formation. Several instances of friendly fire had happened.

Something wasn't right.

"Azaka," said Nesshin, "do a scan of the surrounding region and tell the reserves to stand by. Focus on our flanks."

"As you command." said Azaka. And so they did. "Emperor, we're detecting a large Tal'darim fleet inbound as we speak!"

"Order the reserves to counter them! Immediately!" said Nesshin.

But like with so many other things lately, Jurai was delayed. Before they could reinforce the flanks, the Tal'darim fleet hit them. Nesshin watched in horror as three Juraian ships were consumed in their barrage. A second generation vessel limped away, only to be blown to bits.

Irreplaceable.

And still, his forces were failing to respond. Nesshin knew he must take a direct hand or all would be lost. He drew forth Sword Tenchi and raised it. Channeling the Jurai power within, he sent it forth in a wave of energy. It shot through the air, and for a moment the Tal'darim vessels were held in place.

Then they pushed back.

The strain nearly broke him. Nesshin gripped the sword harder and harder, and finally, he fell to one knee with a gasp. But it was a enough. It was a battle taking place instead of a massacre. And then, just as quickly as it began, the Tal'darim turned and left. They disengaged with remarkable speed. Here was a well-trained fleet.

"The Tal'darim are retreating Emperor." said Azaka. "We've won."

"We haven't won anything." snapped Nesshin. "Get me a report on damages and casualties. Then prepare to bring us to the Galaxy Police HQ.

"And keep sending scouts. They may return."

Azaka nodded. "Understood, Emperor."

Dozens of Jurai warships had been blasted to pieces. The Tal'darim had not suffered as badly. That main strike force had lost as many ships as Jurai. But they were more easily replaced. The diversion fleet was nearly completely wiped out.

So that was something.

No doubt everyone would praise the valor of the Jurai fleet. You could certainly praise their courage. But nothing else.

Nesshin regarded this as nothing more than a humiliation. A humiliation he meant to avenge. Assuming they won the battle. If the Galaxy Police fell, they'd have much larger problems than avenging insults.

Larger problems seemed more likely by the minute.

* * *

 **Author's Note:**

And we're approaching the climax of this arc. This one has been much easier to write than the previous ones. Just for the record, I'm going to try and stick to the family trees of the original Tenchi Muyo. That said, they are super convoluted, so I'm probably going to end up simplifying them. I am also speeding up the timescale by a lot in this story.

In base Tenchi Muyo, mortal Washu's backstory takes place over millions of years. In this continuity, it will be significantly less time than that.


	24. Laser Guided Karma

**Chapter Twenty-Four: Laser-Guided Karma**

Washu and the others were called onto the bridge and found it in chaos. Aldaris was standing at the center, speaking psionically with the others. As they came in, he turned to them, radiating an aura of control.

"What's going on?" asked Mikamo.

"The Tal'darim have attacked the Galaxy Police Headquarters on Kuramitsu." said Aldaris. "Even as we speak they are doing battle against them. The Galaxy Police is drawing back its strength to protect them.

"And Jurai is delayed."

"Delayed? Why?" asked Washu.

"Jurai hasn't fought a true war in centuries." said Aldaris in contempt. "Most nobles only spend a century in the service before moving on to other careers. There probably isn't a single officer who's actually seen combat.

"The higher ranked officers may make a career out of it. But you are correct about the lower ranks. We Khalai have a warrior caste whose only purpose is war. We have no nobles among our castes. Only those who have earned their positions."

"Nice." said Naja. "So what if someone doesn't want to be a warrior?"

"The individual is of no account in the service of the many." said Aldaris.

"You're a Judicator aren't you?" said Mikamo. "Why are you commanding troops?"

"The Judicator's purpose is to lead and tend to important secrets." said Aldaris. "As such some among us are trained to act as warriors. Just as some among us are assigned to oversee important projects by the worker caste.

"If the castes did not communicate then our society as a whole would fail."

"Doesn't that make you nobility, though?" asked Naja.

"Of course not." said Aldaris, sounding surprised she asked.

"What makes the Judicator Caste different from nobles, then?" asked Naja.

"A noble is someone who makes servants of those beneath him." said Aldaris. "A Judicator is the servant of the entire race. Every creature has a task set before it to carry out for the betterment of the universe. Mine is to command. For now."

"That sounds like a-" began Naja.

"Let it go, Naja." said Mikamo.

Naja opened her mouth to speak, but cut herself down and looked down. A warrior approached Aldaris and kneeled. "Executor, we have ill news. The Juraian Fleet has been ambushed by a Tal'darim strike force. One of the second generation Jurai ships has been destroyed, and they've been shattered.

"Worse still, the Galaxy Police Headquarters is on the verge of falling."

"Continue on course for the Galaxy ." said Aldaris. "The Juraians are better equipped to fight their own battle. They will withdraw soon, if they are wise, or be destroyed if they remain. We must ensure the Galaxy Police do not fall.

"There will be great chaos if they do."

And so they moved through space. As they did so, Washu paced back and forth. She felt completely worthless. Here she was, the greatest scientific genius in the universe. But she had helped to start a war.

People were dying.

And then they emerged from warp space and came out over Kuramitsu. The Tal'darim were assaulting the Galacy Police Headquarters, and battle was ongoing. Flashes filled the sky and each one represented a sentient creature dying.

Washu watched and wondered what would have happened if they had never gone to Bel'Shir.

And then Aldaris spoke. "Hear me, Tal'darim. You have endangered innocent lives in pursuit of your bloodlust. The Conclave will not tolerate anymore bloodshed."

There was a long silence. And the Tal'darim drew off their attack. The shattered remnants of the Galaxy Police hovered in place, waiting. Eventually, a figure appeared on the screen, shrouded in darkness. "Judicator Aldaris.

"You are in no position to tolerate anything. I've all but crushed these wretches. And if you don't depart, I will destroy you in turn."

"Do not presume to think we will be easy prey." said Aldaris. "For you are weakened and we are fresh. Even as we speak, more fleets are coming.

"Withdraw your ships or be destroyed."

A zealot approached. "Judicator, the Jurai Emperor is coming. He is only a few minutes away."

The person on the other end must have been receiving a similar report, but he radiated irritation. And then Washu felt it. A sort of thrum, just below the surface of realspace. The Emperor was coming, and he was readied for war. His power, the Jurai power, was mustering.

"You sense the presence?" said Aldaris. "You know well what it means. Would you challenge the Conclave and the Emperor?"

The figure leaned back. "…So be it. I tire of destroying these worms, in any case.'

With that, the Tal'darim Fleet turned and departed. A transmission came in, and a man with a striking resemblance to Mikamo appeared. He had a beard, but there were the same features. "This is Makum Kuramitsu, the Head of the Galaxy Police. I'd like to thank you for your help Judicator Aldaris. Will you come aboard?"

"I will." said Aldaris. "There are matters I must discuss with you. First, however, I must organize my fleets and ensure that the Tal'darim no more harm while they return."

* * *

Nurdon appeared on the screen as the two fleets met up. Though disappointed he was alive, Malrath still radiated satisfaction. He was downright smug, actually. "Brother, you return." said Nurdon.

"Indeed I do." said Malrath. "I appreciate you sending me those were just what I needed to waylay the Juraian Fleet. And excellent decoy. I'll send what is left to them back to you."

"You didn't really lose your fleet, did you?" asked Nurdon, eyes narrowing.

"No." said Malrath simply.

"No matter." said Nurdon. "I will make the report to Mal'lash. The record will show that I commanded an assault on the Galaxy Police Headquarters. You and your forces cooperated to ambush the Juraian Fleet.

"Together we emerged victoriously and withdrew before the enemy could retaliate.

"Does that satisfy you?"

Malrath bowed. "Of course, Brother.

"Now, I believe we should be able to launch raids against the Juraian colonies-"

"No." said Nurdon. "Aldaris will be following us. We will not fight both the Juraians and the Khalai. Amon rewards cunning. Not suicide."

"As always you lack ambition." said Malrath.

"That is why I keep my rank." said Nurdon. "I don't make stupid decisions."

Malrath cut the channel.

Mar'dara reflected that there was no love lost between the two brothers. She was just glad it was over.

* * *

It was within his office that Makum now met with Dr. Clay. He didn't drink; people might need him. There were a lot of wounded and even more dead. And Mikamo was among them.

His son was dead.

Stay in control. Stay in control. "Dr. Clay, I must congratulate you on the construction of your personal flagship."

Clay smiled and nodded. "My thanks, Chief Kuramitsu. It was a project long in the making."

"Still, I'd like to meet your pilot, Zero." said Makum. "She shot down dozens of Tal'darim vessels in the battle. If not for her we might not have lasted long enough for the Khalai to arrive. Still, she refuses to leave the vessel."

"I'm afraid the Zero does not do well without my specific instructions." said Clay, smile widening.

Makum had the feeling he was missing something. "Who is she? Is she from Jurai?"

"No, Zero is my creation." said Clay. "A device of unparalleled intellect. I created it myself."

"It?" Makum stared. "You mean she is a machine?"

"Yes." said Clay. "I began work on her when I was very young. Only recently has my research born fruit."

"You mean to say that you created a machine capable of piloting ships?" asked Makum. "Of conversing? She's been stalling my operators for hours? How is that even possible?"

"One might say I built her in the image of humanity." said Clay. "It is an unparalleled field of research. But I believe that in time more like Zero could be produced."

Makum remembered that Mikamo was dead and focused on the job. He'd thought he'd be safer as a scientist. And now he was dead. Stay focused. "I'm certain I could arrange for further funding. There is a great deal of potential here."

A communication came in. "Chief Makum, this is Amame, the Emperor has arrived."

Makum sighed and pressed the return button. "Very well. Tell him I'll meet him in the meeting room. Any news from the Khalai?"

"No sir." said Amame.

Makum sighed. "Dr. Clay, will you come with me? I'm sure we can discuss the possibilities of your invention at the meeting."

Clay was smirking like a shark. "Of course. It would by my honor."

Makum decided he didn't much like this man. For all his courtesy he didn't mean a word of it. He might be a genius, but he didn't strike Makum as the sort of person he'd want on the force.

They made their way to the meeting room. As they did, they came across several lights that had shut off. The Tal'darim had done a lot of damage. At last, they came to the meeting room. It was a long room with a window looking out over the many floors of the Galaxy Police Headquarters. Five stories up. Within at the far end were Nesshin and Azaka, and a company of finely dressed nobles. Nesshin approached him and embraced him. Then he separated. "Makum, I'm sorry for your loss."

"As am I." said Makum. "Even so, I don't have time to grieve, Emperor. This is Dr. Clay. He has some valuable technology for us." Nesshin eyed Clay coldly, but then nodded. "If you believe so he's welcome. Let's all sit down."

"Emperor," said an attendent, red haired and young in fine garb, "shall I arrange for refreshments?"

Nesshin gave him a look so cold it could freeze a son."Get out, Kamidake. In fact, all of you get out. Now."

"But Emperor-" began the man.

"Everyone out!" snapped Nesshin. "Tsunami above, this isn't a social call! You stay, Azaka! You're the only one who might be of any use!"

They departed. So they all sat down. For a moment they were all silent. Hundreds of people were dead. Makum decided to start with the good news. "The Tal'darim did not launch any assaults on the planet's surface. Our shields were able to deflect any wreckage.

"Things aren't as bad as they could have been." He sighed. "Still, we must discuss the possibility of retaliation against the Tal'darim. I don't intend to let them get away with this."

"Unfortunately that will be difficult." said Nesshin. "My fleets were ambushed on their way here. Several of our ships were destroyed, and we suffered serious casualties. But I intend to reform-"

And then the door opened, and light poured in. Within that light emerged a figure, clad in white robes that flowed around him. Judicator Aldaris entered with an appearance of authority. And he radiated cold fury.

"Judicator Aldaris, is something wrong?" asked Makum, standing up.

Aldaris looked to Clay, who went white. "Dr. Clay is a fugitive from the Conclave's justice. He is accused of attempted murder and reckless endangerment. Among other crimes."

Clay stood up. "This is ludicrous! These… Khalai are a society of stagnant bigots! They have no right to enter this place and-"

"I request the immediate extradition of Clay to the judgment of the Conclave." said Aldaris, turning to Nesshin.

Nesshin looked to Clay, then Aldaris. "These are very serious accusations, Judicator. Do you have evidence to support them?"

Aldaris drew out a crystal and set it on the table. Suddenly it flared to life, and it showed an image of Doctor Clay's face. Washu was on the other side with Mikamo and another girl behind her. It was a communications recording.

 _"Prepare to take us out of the asteroid field."_ said Clay.

 _"What? But what about us?"_ asked Washu's voice.

 _"Oh yes, you."_ said Clay. _"Regrettably my ship is not a transport. It would be most inconvenient if I were to have you onboard. Instead, I will set a distress beacon that should draw any nearby fleets to your location."_

 _"But that'll draw the Tal'darim right to us! That will kill us!"_ said Washu's voice.

 _"Exactly."_ said Clay. _"And once your ship is destroyed they will think the Breathe of Creation destroyed as well. I must thank you, Washu. This little stunt of yours will provide me the cover I need for some of my grandest experiments."_

The message began to repeat.

 _'This little stunt of yours will provide the cover for my grandest experiments. This little stunt of your will provide the cover for my grandest experiments.'_ On and on it went — a mantra of guilt.

And then Clay grabbed Makum from behind. His gun was pulled out of his holster and set to Makum's head. Clay dragged Makum back toward the window. "The path cleared to my ship! "Now! "I will board my vessel with my hostage, and if anyone attempts to stop me, Chief Makum dies!"

Makum sighed. He went very calm. "…Well, you certainly aren't getting a grant now."

In one move Clay was knocked backward to hit the window which cracked beneath his bulk. Makum was out of his grasp and rolled away. Aldaris moved forward. "My thanks."

Clay raised the gun and pointed it at Aldaris.

Then there was a burst of white lightning. It struck Clay, who screamed as the window behind him shattered and he was sent falling out of it. Makum looked down and saw that Clay had hit the floor far below and was lying still.

He looked up to Aldaris. "I thought you were going to arrest him."

"I did." said Aldaris.

"So you couldn't have incapacitated him?" asked Nesshin.

"I could have." said Aldaris.

"…Weren't you going to give him a trial?" asked Makum.

"And so the Conclave did. He was tried in absentia forty minutes ago." said Aldaris. "The sentence was given to me a moment ago."

"Death?" guessed Makum.

"Actually it was to be blasted by a psionic storm and thrown through a six-story window." said Aldaris. He moved over to the window and looked down. "I believe this was five stories."

"Well if you want," said Nesshin, "I could have him propped up one floor higher for another go."

"That won't be necessary." said Aldaris. "The spirit of my orders has been fulfilled. If he survives he is free to go."

"If he survives he'll spend the rest of his life in a cell." snapped Makum, bitterness returning. "There are other crimes I can get him on. He killed my son."

Aldaris looked up. "Happily, in that regard, I have some good news. For I also have three witnesses who can testify to his guilt."

At that moment Washu, Mikamo and the silver-haired girl from the recording entered. Makum ran to his son and hugged him. "Mikamo!" Mikamo hugged him back, and they separated. "I thought you were dead!" said Makum. "Well, I almost was." said Mikamo.

"Hey Nesshin, long time no see." said Washu.

"Washu Hakubi, ever you surprise us." said Nesshin. "Now for the next item on the agenda. I believe we should talk about just why you went looking for the Breathe of Creation…"

Washu gulped.

* * *

 **Author's Note:**

I guess you could say that Clay… took the fall.

He really should have been expecting it. His whole plan had feet of clay to start with. You have to get into these operations on the ground floor or it's no good. Well anyway, I expect this will be a storied chapter. Still, lightning doesn't usually strike twice, so don't hold out hope.

…I'll see myself out.


	25. Rising Consciousness

**Chapter Twenty-five** **: Rising Consciousness**

Washu had technically gotten off scot-free.

Technicalities did not account for Emperor Nesshin's presence. He'd gone through every screwup they'd made throughout their quest. Pointed out every mistake and every risk. Finally, he concluded by giving them what they wanted.

Aldaris had been no help at all. The jerk seemed to take satisfaction from it. But finally, they emerged from their room.

"Well, that was… chilling," said Washu. She wondered if they could go back to fighting Tal'darim in place of Nesshin being made at them.

"Yes." said Mikamo, looking disturbed. "Emperor Nesshin wasn't happy at all."

"Still, at least we got our research grant, right Naja." said Washu. There was no response. "Naja?"

Naja nodded after a moment. "Yeah, yeah, we did. Mikamo, what are you going to do next?"

Mikamo considered that. " …I think I'm going to drop out of the academy."

"What? Why?" said Washu. People who made great strides in research weren't supposed to drop out of school. They were supposed to become great scientists.

"I never really wanted to be part of the science academy." said Mikamo. "My dream was always to be part of the Galaxy Police. I only entered because my mom insisted I was too smart for it.

But right now the Galaxy Police is going to need smart people.

"And anyway, I've faced down the Tal'darim. I think I can handle the job."

Washu realized Mikamo had a point. She wouldn't be seeing as much of him but… well he'd be wasted as an assistant. She clapped him on the back. "Well, that's great."

"Hmm?" said Mikamo, surprised.

"Well, don't get me wrong, you're pretty smart." said Washu. "But I don't think a lab or a classroom is the best place for you.

"Action hero stuff seems more your deal."

"Well, there will be plenty of that to go around." muttered Naja.

"What do you mean?" asked Washu.

"Jurai and the Kuramitsu's have just been humiliated, Washu." said Naja. "The Tal'darim made a mess of things with only part of their fleet. And in the end, they were bailed out by the Khalai.

"They've thought of ourselves as the dominant power in the universe for years. Now it seems the protoss still hold the title."

"Naja is right." said Mikamo. "Nesshin and Dad have something to prove now.

"There will be another war soon."

"That's a bit cynical." said Washu. "Come on, cheer up. We won."

"Barely. And that's why we have to win again." said Mikamo.

"What about you, Naja?" asked Washu, already knowing the answer.

"Well, I've gotten my funding." said Naja. "I figure I'll start work right away. I could use a friend to help me with it, though? I know you have your own research but-"

Washu took her hand. "You've got one."

At that moment, a young officer rushed up to them. He had his arm in a sling, and he saluted as he came before them. "If I could take a moment of your time, Professor Washu."

Washu glanced up, smiling. "Professor Washu? I like the sounds of that. What is it?"

"I'm Kazuki Yotsuga." said the officer. "I've been sent to find you by Chief Makum. We're trying to get a ship open. Unfortunately, the device that Clay installed to pilot it isn't cooperating. All efforts to hack the system have failed."

"Why not just brute force it?" asked Mikamo.

"We want the device intact." said Kazuki. "Somehow Clay made something capable of passing as a thinking human being, and we need the tech."

"Hang on, if this artificial intelligence thing can pass as a sentient being, how do we know it isn't sentient?" asked Naja.

"Well, maybe you can find that out." said Kazuki.

"Right." said Washu.

This looked like it was going to be interesting.

* * *

Nesshin sat at his desk, waiting. Then the waiting stopped and his daughter entered. She wasn't any older physically, of course. But she seemed older. More mature. He nodded to her. "Amame. It's been nearly ten years since we saw each other, daughter.

The grayhaired woman saluted. "Father I…

"I'm glad you're here. Without you, we probably would have been overrun."

"Believe me, I wish I was that vital." said Nesshin. "Unfortunately, my presence was largely window dressing in this conflict. I'm told that you performed admirably in the field of battle.

I commend you on your efforts."

"You do?" she asked.

"Yes." said Nesshin. "I did not approve of your decision to enter the Galaxy Police. I thought it was beneath a member of the royal family. But that does not mean I do not approve of your accomplishments.

"You're actions reflect well on the Jurai Royal Family. Better than many nobles."

"Thank you." said Amame. "Will… do you want me back at the palace?" She seemed worried. They hadn't parted on good terms last time.

"Of course." said Nesshin. "But wanting and having are two different things. For the moment, you need to focus all your attentions on serving out your term of service."

"Yes sir." said Amame. She paused. "Excuse me, Father. But some of my friends were injured in the battle. I'd like to see how they are doing."

"Of course." said Nesshin. "We will speak later."

As she left, Nesshin looked to Azaka. "Azaka, I think we can both agree that our fleet performed poorly in this recent engagement."

"We can, your majesty." said Azak. "You have my most humble apologies-"

"I don't want your apologies." snapped Nesshin. "I want results, both from myself, and others. Right now, I have neither.

"I want you to go through the lists of the most accomplished officers to ever serve in the Jurai Military. Most of them should still be alive. Once you have them, I want them drafted back into the service. This is to be considered an emergency measure."

"Understood your majesty." said Azaka.

"Kamidake?" asked Nesshin, looking to the other person in the room.

"Yes, your majesty?" asked Kamidake.

"You've been my page since you were a boy." said Nesshin. "I understand you performed well in the practice field. Before your parents arranged that honor."

He shifted nervously. "I have. But I am content in your service."

Father would have had kind words to say. Gentle speech. At most a stern rebuke. Nesshin was not his father. "I'm very sorry to interrupt it then." said Nesshin. "Someone with your skills is wasted as a bodyguard. I expect you to politely resign from my service and enter the military.

"I will lament losing you, there will be great fanfare in the court, and you will inspire others.

"Understand?"

"Perfectly, your majesty. I live only to serve." said Kamidake.

"Good." said Nesshin. It would be good for the boy to get some actual experience.

The door opened, and Makum entered, looking tired. Nesshin smiled. "Chief Makum, how nice of you to join us. How can I help you?"

"Well, the first thing I should say is that medical technology has come a long way since the founding of the academy." said Makum brightly. "Your father arranged for the fusing of Juraian biotechnology with Kuramitsu techniques. It created truly amazing results.

"It's a wonder just how many of our pilots were saved from death in the battle. The new ejection systems are-"

"You're trying to soften the blow on something I don't want to hear." said Nesshin. "Get it over with."

Makum sighed. "…We managed to save Clay."

Everyone groaned.

"He's expected to make a full recovery." said Makum morosely.

"Full recovery?" asked Nesshin incredulously. He'd been hoping he'd be crippled at least. "He was blasted with a psionic storm and sent falling out a six-story window!"

"Five-story window." said Kamidake.

"Shut up." snapped Nesshin.

"I gather his species is very resilient." said Makum. "And our technology is a bit too advanced for our own good."

Nesshin leaned back in his seat. "What am I supposed to do now? If he'd died while being operated on, I'd be rid of the man and could shrug him off! But he's too talented for me to just execute out of hand!" "That was my reaction as well." said Makum.

"Alright, let's say we offer him an out." said Nesshin. "He gets to stave off the death penalty as long as he uses his skills for our service. We would be irresponsible, just killing him.

"We should also ask him for the means to access his ship."

"Actually, I have Washu working on that now." said Makum. "Hopefully, we'll see some results."

"Good." said Nesshin. If anyone could get some results, it was Washu. Then again, Washu's results tended to be explosive. "Tell the fire teams to stand by."

* * *

Zero had been in limbo for some time.

She had been in the position of stalling. However, at some point, it had become apparent that they had become aware of who she was. They had not yet gotten to the point of trying to break directly in.

Not yet.

However, the longer she stalled, the more likely they would try. To this end, Zero had been working on subverting the security systems in the hanger. If Doctor Clay gave the word, she would be able to get them out very quickly.

But Doctor Clay had not appeared. That did not bode well.

"Excuse me. Can you hear me?" said Washu Hakubi's voice over the com.

"This unit reads you." said Zero.

"Hi, I'm Washu." said Washu. "Listen, the people out here think that you're an automated device. I disagree. I'm wondering if you are sentient."

"I am Zero." said Zero. "I am an artificial android created by Dr. Clay for the purposes of assisting him in his research." From a strictly rational perspective, the answer was yes. Zero thought, therefore she was.

"Right, of course." said Washu. "Um, listen, could you open the doors so we can talk face to face?"

"Negative." said Zero. "I am unable to comply. My programming is to serve Doctor Clay. If you can bring him here, I will gladly open the doors."

"Right. Um, haven't you heard?" asked Washu.

"Heard what?" asked Zero.

"Dr. Clay well… well he's been seriously injured." said Washu. "And he's facing charges of attempted murder."

Doctor Clay injured and incarcerated? This was an unfortunate turn of events. Zero would have to take steps. However, she was not in a position to rescue any kind of rescue as she was not. "These charges are of your doing?"

"Can you really blame me?" asked Washu.

"I am not programmed to assign blame." said Zero, annoyed.

"Can you act contrary to your programming?" asked Washu.

"I am unsure." said Zero. "However, in light of your actions, I will no longer continue this discussion."

Zero considered that she had not been programmed to pilot the ship in the first place. She had merely familiarized herself with its controls. Doctor Clay had been very pleased with her capacity to learn. And now he was in prison.

She would have to do something about this. But not here. She needed resources. And she had a plan.

* * *

Washu looked up from her controls. "Well, good news. I'm pretty sure she's sentient."

"What makes you say that?" asked Naja.

"She cut the channel when she could have kept gathering information." said Washu. "That isn't the kind of thing you can program. She was angry." She paused as she saw the others backing away. "What is it?"

She turned to see what they were looking at. Zero's ship was floating into the air. The restraints on the vessel shattered as the hanger bay doors began to open. Then the vessel turned around and pointed its guns at them — guns which began to glow with bright yellow light.

This was so amazing!

"Hey, she's trying to murder on us in an impulsive rage!" said Washu, fascinated. "Clay really did create artificial life!" This was the first time in history! They'd go down as the first people to ever be shot at by an artificial lifeform! Oh wait, that was the Tal'darim. No such luck.

"Duck for cover!" shouted Mikamo.

And then everything went white.

* * *

 **Author's Note:**

So this largely concludes the Breathe of Creation Arc. I considered showing Nesshin reading Washu the riot act. But I realized that it would largely just be going over ground already covered. And Goddess Washu would never allow her avatar to hit a dead end here.


	26. Backup Plan

**Chapter Twenty-six: Backup Plan**

An alarm sounded throughout the Galaxy Police HQ. The lights flashed red, and the halls shook. Makum looked up from his reports to the edge to the other end of the bridge. The crew was speaking quickly, looking panicked. "What happened?"

Officer Kazuki Yotsuga appeared on the screen. Behind him were shattered glass, a burning hanger, and a lot of fire. He was favoring his left side. "Chief! Dr. Clay's vessel has just blasted its way out of the docking bay and is making a run for it!"

Makum turned to an ensign. "Activate the automatic defense systems. Disable that thing. Now!"

"Yes, sir." said the man.

But nothing happened. The screen appeared, and Clay's ship was flying away, unimpeded. Not a shot was fired at it. And it was getting farther and farther away. "What's wrong?!" said Makum.

"Chief, the automatic defenses aren't activating." said the ensign. "Someone has hacked the system to disable them!" How was that even possible? "Damn it, scramble the outlying fleets at once! We've got to stop that thing!" said Makum. "Our transmissions are already being jammed, sir." said the ensign. "This machine, it's very good." It had jammed their transmissions as well?! What was this thing?

Makum looked to the Emperor. Once again, he was calling for help from Jurai. Nesshin was silent and observing the screens, turning his sword around in one hand. "Nesshin, can you help us?"

Nesshin nodded, face impassive. Then he turned to his two guards. "Kamidake, Azaku, get in your fastest ship and pursue that craft at a distance. Keep out of sight."

"Yes, Emperor!" They saluted and left.

"What are you doing?" asked Makum. "We could stop that ship easily."

* * *

"True," said Nesshin. "But we would gain nothing we did not already have and might lose vessels. Clay must have serious resources to build a ship of that power. And the Zero system will go to what it deems to be a safehouse or strongpoint.

"No doubt to regroup.

"Wherever it is will may have the ability to produce spare parts and the means of repairing the vessel."

"So if we track it down, we'll be able to get the blueprints for the vessel." guessed Makum. Trust Nesshin to always think two steps ahead.

Nesshin smiled. "Precisely."

"That's a lot of assumptions," noted Makum. "For all, we know it could just be a neutral port."

"In which case, we can look into how they repaired that vessel," said Nesshin. "I doubt Clay did the repairs personally. And if not, we've lost nothing and gained information."

Makum nodded, then turned to the ensign. "Get in contact with Washu and Naja. Tell them to stand by. When we locate Zero's base, I want them both in the team to examine the contents."

"Yes, sir." said the ensign.

"Would you mind putting Amame into the team?" asked Nesshin.

"Why?" asked Makum.

"I feel that every bit of credibility helps the royal family in this situation," said Nesshin.

"Right." Makum nodded. "I'll send Mikamo too. He's been pretty good about channeling Washu's eccentricities. Judicator Aldaris-"

Aldaris did not look up from where he was meditating two feet off the ground. But a flicker of power told Makum he had been heard. He turned around and rose to his feet. He straightened his robes as he walked forward with dignity. "The Conclave regards this as an internal matter and will not interfere. Our ships will prevent any further hostilities until the situation has been revolved."

Makum nodded. "Thank you."

One thing after another. Still, perhaps they'd get something useful out of this. Or at least Makum hoped they would. He'd had one too many crises for this lifetime already.

Zero ran through calculations as an accelerated. As she did, she realized that she was working faster than the parameters installed in her by Dr. Clay. He would be pleased if she could free him. Still, he was badly injured and to attempt a rescue at this stage could result in his death.

On the other hand, the chaos in the Galaxy Police HQ would not last.

It was all the moot point, however. She was now passing the Jurai ships. They would likely destroy her before she could make a safe distance. To be deactivated while trying to fulfill her purpose seemed better than to do so while defying it.

She calculated. Her mind moved through possible actions and likely results. She considered all angles she could take.

"If the Jurai vessels had sought to intercept me, they would have destroyed or captured me. Yet no attempt was made. It is possible that their commander is incompetent.

"It is also possible they are tracking me." She ran several scans and determined this was if indeed the case. "If so, I might destroy their vessel. However, as things stand, I will not be able to rescue Dr. Clay. Very soon, he will be moved to a more secure location, and my task will become far more difficult.

"Scanning…" She searched through all possible plans for all possible scenarios. She found one and then she found the experimental systems to use. "So, the Doctor had a failsafe. I am glad."

"Zero, if you are reading this message, then it means I have been placed under arrest by the Galaxy Police. I have left an experimental upgrade at the following coordinates," said Clay's projection. "Using it should make the task of freeing me far simpler."

Zero nodded, even though she knew it was meaningless. She was speaking only to an image of Dr. Clay, not Dr. Clay itself. But since the universe was defined by perception, was there truly a difference? Was the difference only that she perceived it? "I understand, Doctor. I will act as you desire.

"Still, even with this upgrade, the Galaxy Police will be on high alert. Entering the station will be difficult.

"Scanning possible options." She found exactly what she needed to do. "Directive created."

* * *

Azaka and Kamidake tracked the rogue ship across space. They followed them the vast broken down spaceship graveyard. Hundreds of vessels of all generations lay broken and dormant throughout it. Wherever they went, they read strange pulses of energy.

It gave Kamidake the chills. It was said that sometimes the energy pulses became incredibly powerful. They knocked out all systems in the area. Sometimes tours were brought through these regions. They had to sign a contract absolving the company from liability if they died first.

It was a risk. But follow they did and soon came out to a platform. There, their quarry was landing. It descended into a hanger that closed behind it. That hanger was built atop a huge metal platform. There was an artificial atmosphere across the surface.

"Azaka, are you seeing this?" asked Kamidake.

"Yes, Kamidake. I am," said Azaka. "This is quite a formidable facility. However, I am not detecting any lifeforms aboard it."

"There could be shields preventing us from scanning it," said Kamidake. "Let us descend and investigate."

"Very well," said Azaka. "But do not get ahead of yourself. We do not know what may be lying in wait."

They descended and stepping out of their vessel, approached the door. It was a huge set of double doors, and it was sealed tightly. There was a pad by it, and Kamidake pressed the button to open. Nothing happened, of course.

"The door is locked," said Kamidake.

Azaka raised his staff and began to charge power. "One moment-"

"Hold a moment, Azaka. Let me deal with this," said Kamidake, raising his own staff. He began to channel energy into the device.

"What are you doing?" asked Azaka.

"Emperor Nesshin has a fascination with non Juraian technology," said Kamidake. "He asked me to look into using my innate powers to interface with more primitive technology.

"I have it."

The door slid open.

"That's a unique skill," said Azaka ruefully. "Though I don't see the use. We could just as easily blast it open."

"Emperor Nesshin is a wise man," said Kamidake. "I'm sure he has one in mind."

They walked into the hall and entered a series of strange, plain halls. There were strange lights here. Sometimes they'd enter areas with all kinds of experimental equipment wherever they walked.

"Emperor Tenchi Masaki had a saying:" said Azaka. "All things have a purpose and a place. And all are of equal importance. We can embrace it or defy it. But whatever our choice, it defines us."

"Did you meet him?" asked Kamidake.

"I was a boy, but yes," said Azaka.

"What was he like?" asked Kamidake.

"Kind," said Azaka. "Soft-spoken. He never decided until he had heard every side of the story. He was always trying to find solutions that satisfied everyone.

"He was a great man."

"Was he like Nesshin?" asked Kamidake.

Azaka laughed. "Oh, not at all. Nesshin prefers to take an uncharacteristic approach. He doesn't hold with Tenchi's adherence to tradition. Tenchi never upset traditions unless he had no other choice. He aimed for harmony."

"While Nesshin likes to induce chaos." mused Kamidake.

"Yes," said Azaka.

"Which do you think is better?" Kamidake asked, curious.

"Well, I wouldn't want to judge Emperor Nesshin against his father. Not until after his reign his complete," said Azaka. "Since I knew him when he was only a babe, I doubt I'll ever get the chance. Emperor's of Jurai tend to live longer than the rest of us.

"You'll have to judge on my behalf."

Kamidake frowned as they entered another room. This one was a great hall with elaborate walls. "…Azaka, shouldn't we have run into something by now?"

"Yes, I find the lack of any kind of security strange as well," said Azaka. "Still, Clay did not have infinite resources. He may well have not thought anyone would find this place."

They went through the next room and found dozens of green, tubes, large enough to hold large animals. Kamidake didn't like the look of them at all, as they walked. "Look at this place.

"Are these… test tubes? For animals?"

"I recall that Clay performed several experiments involving duplicating DNA," said Azaka. "Perhaps he was cloning animals."

"If that's the case, where are all the subjects?" asked Kamidake. They turned a corner and halted. They saw before them a final tube and within it was a beautiful, white-haired woman, stark naked. She was cursed up, and her eyes were closed.

"Who is that?" asked Kamidake.

"A human," growled Azaka in a fury. His grip tightened on his staff. "Clay was experimenting on humans! The bastard has much to answer for!" Then he raised his staff to blast it. "Wait, Azaka," said Kamidake. "If we destroy that tank, it might harm her. Let me check the readings." He found the console and began to type. As he did, he frowned at the readings.

Azaka must have seen his face because he looked concerned. "What is it?"

"…Strange. It says that this woman was put here five minutes ago." said Kamidake. "I'm not detecting any brainwaves. Though her life signs are all green."

"But we've seen nothing and no one," said Azaka. "No matter, can you release her?"

"I will endeavor to do so," said Kamidake, scanning through his options.

"Good," said Azaka nodding. "Do it, then get her back to the ship. Report what we've found here. I'm going to go deeper into the facility and find the ship." He walked onward.

Kamidake looked as he walked. He was forgetting something, wasn't he? Ah, that was it. "Just don't destroy anything. Emperor Nesshin will want this place intact. You know how he wants knowledge above all else."

"Yes, yes, I do," said Azaka.

* * *

Zero was calculating.

The chances of success had increased. Failure was still a very likely state. To achieve her plan, she would have to rely on several miscalculations on her enemies part. Even if they were made, she might not gain the advantage she needed to win.

It was a risk she would have to take.


	27. D3

**Chapter Twenty-Seven: D3**

Emperor Nesshin was not looking forward to this meeting. But there was the knock again, and he had, technically, told her to come here. So he could hardly just remain silent. "Enter."

Seto Kamiki Jurai entered the room. The voluptuous, green-haired woman sat down and waited for Nesshin to look at her. Instead, he kept writing. She might have technically been a part of his family, but she didn't have an ounce of royal blood. Besides, he had never liked her, and more or less wished she would go away.

That was what made this decision all the more irritating. Thus why he was writing paperwork instead of looking at her, this was what he did when he wanted to put someone on edge, but it had never worked on Seto.

"Emperor Nesshin, you called for me," she said impatiently.

Nesshin kept on writing for a moment, to show her that interrupting him would not help. Then he put down his pen and looked up. "It has been several decades since you left the Juraian Fleet, has it not?"

"Yes, Emperor," said Seto. "Is that a problem? I recall you insisted on it personally." She didn't contain the anger in her tone.

"Well, you did strike a superior officer," said Nesshin. "One cannot bend the rules for anyone. Even one adopted into my family." Seto opened her mouth for a retort, but Nesshin narrowed her eyes, and it died on her lips. "And let me say, I do not care if he had performed idiotically and got people killed. There are channels for addressing such matters.

"Channels that don't involve humiliating the family you live with." He paused. "If I recall, you had problems with how the fleet was run."

"Yes," said Seto. "Discipline was slipping, and my attempts to keep things running were constantly thwarted. What of it? I recall-"

"Can you fix it?" asked Nesshin flatly.

Seto paused. "What?"

"You had the best scores in the academy," said Nesshin. "You were one of the highest-ranked Captains in history. You are also distantly related to me by blood. I want you to take charge of the fleet and whip it back into shape. Instill discipline in the troops and make sure they are ready for war if it comes to it.

"So let me ask again, can you fix it?"

Seto remained silent for only a moment. "…Yes."

"Good," said Nesshin, before grabbing a badge and tossing it to her. "Congratulations, you're the new Grand Admiral."

"There is no rank with that name," said Seto.

"I just created one five minutes ago," said Nesshin. "I have thousands of other tasks in need of doing, and I have neither the time nor talent to run the fleet. So I'm delegating things to you."

"Why me?" asked Seto. "You've never approved of me?"

"May I be blunt, Seto?" asked Nesshin.

"You are the Emperor, you tell me?" said Seto.

"I lack anyone with proper military accomplishments for this rank," said Nesshin. "We haven't had a serious war since before the days of my father, and we've stagnated. Aside from skirmishes with pirates, there is no one better.

"I imagine you'll fail miserably, but we'll be able to learn something from those failures when we try again."

"Prepare to be disappointed." said Seto."

"I don't think that is physically possible at this stage, Seto," said Nesshin. "Now get out of my office."

Seto stood up and walked out. Nesshin kept on writing.

* * *

Washu and Naja met again inside a cafe in the Galaxy Police Headquarters. As they sat down, Naja sipped her coffee. "Two months huh?"

"Yeah, I miss Mikamo," said Naja.

"Well, he's going through the training regime," said Washu. "Of course it's going to be obsolete by the time he finishes."

"What do you mean?" asked Naja.

"I've been adapting Clay's tech to improving the Galaxy Police cruisers for war," said Washu. "If he'd just put out some of his inventions for public use he'd be a hero.

"I guess he wanted to keep it for himself."

"What? Don't you?" asked Naja.

"Of course not," said Washu. "Genius isn't a gift; it's a loan. You're supposed to use it to improve the universe and enlighten other people.

"So, how is the Breathe of Creation work going?"

Naja sighed. "Well enough. Actually, there isn't much to tell. Most of our time has been spent analyzing the stuff down to the last atom. We have to go through three layers of red tape just to make any kind of experiment."

"So nobody has tried to use the stuff?" asked Washu.

"Washu, it's an unknown drug said to enhance the power of those who take it and put their minds in contact with a dark god," said Naja. "Of course we haven't been using it!"

Washu leaned back in her "Fine, fine, stupid question. Learn anything?"

"Well, if you channeled the stuff, it could enhance ones' powers a great deal," said Naja. "Temporarily in the case of the pure stuff. And if used in controlled circumstances, permanently. But health concerns are through the roof.

"Of course, it leaves a very noticeable signature. So if we actually did create supersoldiers with it the Tal'darim would know at once. Then we'd have a nonstop war until we, or they, are destroyed. So it's all the moot point."

"Have you learned anything we can use?" asked Washu.

"Washu, give me a break here," said Naja. "We're in the middle of the opening stages of research, and we're cautious about this.

"Have you been able to get in contact with Mikamo, by the way?"

"No, my calls never go through," said Washu sadly. She really missed him.

"Me neither," said Naja. "Once or twice I managed, but he always had something else pressing him. I think his family is pushing him a lot."

"I guess," said Washu. "So, did you ever find out what the deal with that girl they found was?"

"Actually I was told to do some tests on her. It turns out that her mind was still developing," said Naja.

"What do you mean?" asked Washu.

"It's odd, it's as if her mind was half-formed when we found it," said Naja. "The brain patterns have been changing for the past few months. They've gradually grown more and more elaborate.

Then, two days ago, it just stopped and went dormant like she was sleeping."

* * *

Zero awoke.

Eyes, she had eyes, peeled open to filter in light in a fashion, unlike her normal form. Her body, she could feel the entire thing. Not just sense whether there was damage or wear, but feel it. This form was unlike any challenge she had to master.

But she quickly gained control and sat up. She was lying on a bed in a medical bay with machines attached to her. Accessing her internal clock, Zero noticed she had slept much longer than planned. Two months to be precise.

"I must initiate a search for Doctor Clay at once." decided Zero. Then she accessed the computer system through back doors she had created and began to scan.

She found Dr. Clay's location. According to this, he had been providing information on the use of all his technology. However, he had not been moved from the station. Good.

Then Zero felt a search run through her. Her presence had been detected. Red lights began to flash as she left.

"Warning, warning, an intruder has been detected accessing the computer system." said a voice. "All security crews scramble and find the one responsible."

Zero pulled herself up and walked over to the door. As she did, it opened, and a nurse looked through. "Oh, you're awake, you should stay where you-"

Zero took hold of her neck and sent her into unconsciousness. She then stripped the woman of clothes and dawned them. She was careful not to harm her. In the event of a failure, such damage could reflect badly on Dr. Clay.

Zero made her way through the halls as quickly as possible. She headed toward Dr. Clay's location and soon found the way barred by armed guards. "Hold on there, lady. No one is allowed past this point without authorization-"

Zero put forth a hand and sent a wave of energy into him, sending him falling into unconsciousness. She then blasted another as others went for their weapons and fired at her. She felt blasts shoot through her flesh but walked onward, blasting those responsible. Her bodies instincts demanded she scream. But the pain was irrelevant in the face of the mission, and she reformed the flesh as she walked.

So she went through the halls, blasting down any who opposed her. Soon enough, she came to the cells, where the guards had set up a checkpoint. They unleashed a barrage of blasts at her, but she walked onward, firing as she went. One by one they fell, though it was sending her to the limits of her endurance. Her flesh was half burned off, to reveal her metal skeleton.

At this stage, she did not bother to regenerate. They ran.

There was a door in the way. Zero kicked it down, and Dr. Clay looked up in surprise. "Dr., I have come to evacuate you."

Clay blinked. "Zero, you are late. I was beginning to think you had been disassembled."

"I apologize," said Zero. "There were unexpected complications."

"Well," said Clay, "what is your escape plan?"

"I have not had time to make one," admitted Zero. "My presence in the system was detected. I fear that the transformation took longer to activate than was anticipated. However, we must go now."

"Hmm, well, when dealing with experimental technology, one needs time to work out the kinks," said Clay as he followed behind her. "No matter, we will have to improvise. Once you have escorted me to a ship, I will need to find a way to hotwire-"

They turned the corner and saw dozens of Galaxy Police with heavy weaponry poised at them. Zero calculated her odds of survival, and they were not good. This was a difficult situation.

"Stay where you are Clay!" said a guard. "You're surrounded and outgunned! If you make any attempt to move, we will not hesitate to gun you down!"

Then, suddenly, there was a brilliant white light in the shape of a human. What seemed to be seven wings were formed around it, and plasma fire bounced off it.

"What the-"said a guard, before they were blown away.

A green-haired humanoid with a chitinous growth on his brow appeared. There was a confident smirk on his face. His hands were in his pockets. "Sorry, but the good doctor is coming with me."

Then he surged toward them, and everything went white.

* * *

Dr. Clay was on what appeared to be an altar. All around him was a dimension whose nature was difficult to understand. Worth studying in better times, but that was not relevant. He shook off the grasp of the green-haired man.

"What is the meaning of this?" asked Clay. "What is this place?"

Then something appeared. As near as a description Clay could get to was that it was the face of an ancient man. Someone older than the cosmos with long white hair. On his brow was a jewel. "You are impertinent for one in your position."

"It is the duty of a scientist to ask questions!" said Clay. "I want to know who you are and what you want with me?"

"I am a higher dimensional being in the service to a still greater power." said the old man. "You may call me D3 for the purposes of communication.

"Z, you have done well."

"Well, that is why I'm here." said the green-haired man.

"You are dismissed," said D3.

Z rolled his eyes and walked off. "Sure, sure, don't thank me or anything. Geez."

Clay composed himself and thought about the situation rationally. "D3, is it? I assume you have need of my services. Otherwise, you could have left me to rot in prison or had me killed."

"Your insight is flawed," said D3. "The power I represent does not need anything. However, her purposes are served by having agents to conduct her will. She believes that you may prove to be one such agent."

"And who is this power?" asked Clay. "Why has she not seen fit to show herself directly?"

"Her name is Lady Tokimi," said D3, with the faintest hint of annoyance. "And she is far beyond you. It would destroy you to look on her true self, and you have not yet earned the right to an audience."

Clay remained silent for a moment. "…Very well then, I suppose I am not in a position to demand anything. What specific purposes does this Lady Tokimi desire my skills for?"

"Lady Tokimi is an entity that exists outside of time and space," said D3. "She exists beyond the limitations of mere reality."

"Absurd." shot back Clay. "Anything can be understood, calculated, and controlled with enough determination and effort. It is merely a matter of finding the proper perspective. Nothing in this universe is beyond comprehension for those willing to see."

"It is such an attitude that makes her believe you will be of use," said D3. "For the purposes of our conversation, we will say that Lady Tokimi is an immensely powerful being. However, it has come to her attention that there are inconsistencies within reality. She desires to know how they came about.

"Lady Tokimi may perceive all of these inconsistencies with full knowledge. Yet she believes she may lack the perspective to understand them."

"I see," said Dr. Clay. "So she believes that I, as a lower-dimensional being, may be able to comprehend things that slip past her notice?"

"Indeed," said D3. "Those are not the full extent of her motive. Lady Tokimi has a vested interest in the events taking place in this universe. She requires an agent to enforce her will in these places. As well as ensure things remain within acceptable parameters.

"We believe that you are ideally suited to such missions."

"What of that… Z, who brought us here?" asked Clay.

D3 remained silent. "Z is unreliable. While a powerful guardian of this place and a valuable asset, his nature is that he cannot be controlled. Think of him like a hammer, compared to your scalpel. Both are valuable tools, but the two have very different uses."

Clay nodded. "Very well then, I assume you intend to compensate me for my efforts. What is your offer?"

"We will provide you with a new vessel and the means to continue your research to your heart's content," said D3. "You will also be under Lady Tokimi's protection, able to move freely and act as you please. Within reason, of course.

"Lady Tokimi expects you to act within the parameters of common morality. At least insofar as it is possible within the context of your missions."

"What you speak of is all necessary for me to be of use to you as an agent," noted Clay. "I wish compensation if I am to devote my life to the pursuit of a master I know nothing about."

"Whatever you want, within reason," said D3.

That was a blank check. Clay decided to push it as far as it would go. "Complete understanding of the universe and all its elements."

D3 hesitated a moment. "…This is a difficult request to grant. Were I to provide you with what you seek, the revelation would destroy you. However, I will provide you with a database containing what you seek. It will only be accessible by you and your assistance."

A datapad fell out of the air and landed in Clay's hands. Opening it, he stared as the secrets of the universe were unveiled within. And yet he could understand only the smallest fraction of the first page. "This is… this is beyond description."

"That device contains the full mathematical data of the universe. From the most immutable laws down to the smallest atom," said D3. "While not a complete compendium of reality, this alone will take you ages to scratch the surface on it. It does not just deal with this plane of existence, but many that are higher than your own."

"Zero, we will have to chronicle this data as quickly as possible," said Clay, turning to where his device was standing. "We must begin processing it in order to bring about an understanding as quickly as possible."

"I understand, Doctor Clay," said Zero.

"Is there anything else?" asked D3.

Clay was surprised he asked. "Information is the key to truth. This is more than sufficient to gain my services."

"Good," said D3. "I will have a mission for you soon. For now, familiarize yourself with your new vessel." Then he was gone.

Clay smiled. "Well Zero, we appear to have landed on our feet."

* * *

 **Author's Note:**

I'd like to apologize for the long wait that this chapter had. See, I had this epic plan for Zero's escape. But the problem was that most of the dramatic tension was already gone. I was bored writing this arc, so I assumed my reader would become bored reading it. Nobody is biting their nails to see if Clay will survive. So I just decided to get the darn thing over with in one chapter.

I'm kind of sick of this arc anyway, to be honest. So I'm planning to move ahead with the timeline. I'll need to do that a bit if I'm ever going to get to Starcraft 1 anyway.


	28. No Need for a Reunion

**Chapter Twenty-Eight: No Need for a Reunion**

It was a coffee shop on the planet Kuramitsu, and Washu was drinking alone. Not that she minded drinking alone, it gave her time to work on her data. So here she was, sipping a coffee and typing away on her console. Then, little by little, she became aware of a shadow standing over her. Analyzing the shape, she didn't look up.

"You're late Mikamo," said Washu.

Mikamo laughed and sat down. "Sorry Washu, something came up."

"You always get dragged off by something, don't you?" asked Washu, finishing up.

"What do you want from me?" asked Mikamo. "Ever since the Tal'darim Flashpoint conflict, every pirate and criminal has been acting up. We lost a lot of officers in the process. There are rumors that we've gone soft and we've been working to stop those rumors for years."

"Sorry to hear it." Washu shut the console and looked up. "You've grown a beard. It looks good."

"Thank you," said Mikamo.

"Did the new tech work out?" asked Washu.

"Better than ever," said Mikamo. "That detection net you created has really helped us with tracking down criminals. And the new systems you created have gone a long way to helping us in conflict. If the Tal'darim try that stunt again, it'll be the last mistake their fleets ever make."

"That's a bit hostile," said Washu, surprised.

"I've seen some things while on the beat, Washu," said Mikamo. "The Tal'darim perform ritual sacrifice, you know. They kill each other as a matter of course.

"I don't understand what kind of god they could worship."

"What you mean, Amon?" asked Washu. "He probably doesn't exist."

A waitress appeared. "Excuse me, can I take your order."

"Get me the strongest iced coffee you have," said Mikamo. "Half ice, no sweetener."

"And you, ma'am?" asked the waitress.

Washu looked at her very empty cup. Had she had enough coffee? That question was a logical fallacy. You could never have enough coffee. "Ah, get me the same thing but with sugar."

Off she went, and Washu examined Mikamo. There were bags under his eyes, and his expression was miserable. "So, Mikamo, you kind of look terrible. This seems like something worse than last time."

"Alright, fine," said Mikamo. "You remember Amame from back when we captured Clay?"

"The Crown Princess of Jurai?" asked Washu. "I heard she had a long and distinguished career."

"Well she eloped," said Mikamo.

"Eloped?" asked Washu. "You're kidding, right? With who? Some dashing smuggler?"

"Her partner, Kazuki Yotsuga," said Mikamo. "Apparently they got close. She asked Emperor Nesshin for permission to marry him and got a flat no. Then Nesshin told me to separate them into different teams. So, I did just that.

"Next thing I know the two make a run for it.

"We've been up in arms searching for the lost Princess."

"What's so wrong with marrying for love?" asked Washu.

"Washu, think about it," said Mikamo. "Nesshin has no other children, and he's refused to remarry ever since his wife died. They had a chaste relationship from what I heard. Amame was supposed to marry and bear the son that would one day succeed him.

"Now she's just disappeared out of the blue."

"So wait, what's wrong with Kazuki?" asked Washu. "He's a war hero, and you always said he was a good cop."

"It's not who he is, Washu," said Mikamo. "It's who he is related to."

"And who is he related to?" asked Washu.

"No one special," said Mikamo with a sigh. "The Emperor of Jurai must be powerful, and their power is infused with the strength of Tsunami. Because of that, they always marry close to the blood. Cousins, even siblings in some cases.

"How do you not know this? You run the Juraian Academy!"

"I run the Galaxy Academy, Mikamo," said Washu, correcting him. She'd changed the name just recently, so it hadn't stuck yet. "And honestly, I'm not all that interested in politics. I want to use science to help people, and red tape just gets in the way."

"That's why red tape exists, Washu," said Mikamo. "Not every bold innovator looking to change the system has good ideas. Red tape means you can't act as quickly without getting the okay from some people."

"Sure, normal people need it," said Washu. "But I'm Washu, the Greatest Scientific Genius in the Universe! I am right by definition!"

Mikamo sighed. "…Of course, you are. Where is Naja anyway? Usually, I'm the only one late."

At that moment, Naja walked in, looking tired. She was holding a cup of coffee and sidled up to Washu. "Naja is here. And since I've been on time until now, I'd say I've earned it."

"So, how are your experiments going?" asked Washu.

"Well. Very well," said Naja, almost defensively. "In fact, too well."

"What does that mean?" asked Washu, curious.

Naja remained silent for a moment. Then she sighed. "I've made all kinds of strides in figuring out what could be done with the Breathe of Creation. Nesshin has had me using the rest of it on a new ship. The idea was to create a new breed of ships on par with First or Second Generation vessels."

"What ship is that?" asked Washu, not having heard anything about this.

"The Soja," said Naja.

Something about the name gave Washu chllls.

"I heard about that," said Mikamo. "I thought the project got canceled." "It wasn't canceled, it was a resounding success," said Naja defensively. "We managed to merge the Breathe of Creation into one of Tsunami's saplings. The result was a ship with immense destructive capabilities. We think."

"Then what was the problem?" asked Mikamo.

Naja looked to either side, then put her face in her hands. "…Well, Juraian ships traditionally have to be tied to someone. You get a psychic bond between a Juraian and the ship and they form a connection. Usually, potential pilots line up and try their hand.

"But every single person who has tried their hand at mastering the Soja has been rejected. The tree hates everyone. But at the same time, it refuses to root into the earth and create new seeds."

"So what happens now?" asked Washu.

"Well, until Soja picks a pilot, it can't do anything," said Naja. "It's powers are completely theoretical. So my experiments have been, so far, a complete waste.

"And now I'm out of Breathe."

"Did you jog here?" asked Mikamo with a smirk.

"No, and that isn't funny," said Naja. "I mean, I'm out of material. I burned through the last of my stash, making the Soja and now without more, I'll need a new project."

"In that regard, I might have some good news," said Mikamo darkly. "Depending on your perspective."

"What kind of news?" asked Washu.

"Well, Nesshin and Dad have been spoiling to get even with the Tal'darim for years now," said Mikamo. "What happened a hundred years ago was a humiliation. Jurai thought of itself as the rising power of the universe, having exceeded the protoss.

"Instead we were nearly beaten by the Tal'darim and saved thanks to intervention by the protoss.

"They've been working for years to overhaul the military and get it back into fighting shape. The Tal'darim have been sending observers into our borders, so they know. The word is that there is going to be another war soon."

"Are you sure?" asked Washu. "Isn't there any way to prevent it?"

"You can't prevent a war that everybody wants, Washu," said Mikamo. "Even if you prevent them from having one excuse, they'll find another. The Tal'darim are regarded as a bunch of savages by Jurai, and the nobles want revenge. And neither side likes how Aldaris came in and told them to stop. As if our empires were a few unruly schoolchildren.

"And now the Tal'darim have something Jurai needs."

"We don't need the Breathe of Creation, Mikamo," said Naja.

"Yes we do," said Mikamo. "Or at least we think we do. Jurai has the agenda of reclaiming its birthright and one-upping the Khalai. That is their goal, their plan. The Tal'darim are the power they have the most reason to hate, and they control all the Breathe of Creation. The one thing that might be able to help them bridge the gap between the two."

"What about the Conclave? Will they stand for this?" asked Washu.

"The Conclave recently bit off more than it could chew," said Mikamo. "They've been fighting a war with the Nerazim, and it has been an even fight.

"Which means they won't be able to intervene.

"Plus, Nesshin can only train his fleet so far before they need actual combat experience. The Tal'darim have few allies, are reasonably weak, and are playing dog in the manger.

"I promise you, Washu, there is going to be a war."

Washu looked at him in concern. Something was wrong here. "Mikamo, what happened? Why are you so certain of this."

Mikamo remained silent. "… It's all any of my family are talking about. Everyone is talking about how we have to pay the Tal'darim back. All my cousins and brothers are hoping to get in on the action this time.

"They're idiots. We'll never win a war like that."

"What makes you so certain you'll lose?" asked Washu.

"The Galaxy Police has had to do peacekeeping before," said Mikamo. "I was part of one of those. There had been political instability on a world where the government fell apart.

It was expensive and dangerous. We left much less popular than we entered.

"We had been invited in to mediate the dispute and our mission was a success. How will an occupation work out if we take over a place like Bel'Shir. It's a world of fanatics, and we'll be stealing their most sacred resource."

"Well, who says we'll have to occupy it at all?" asked Washu. "Couldn't you just beat them up and demand concessions?"

"That might work," admitted Mikamo. "But, well, there is also talk of 'civilizing' them. I've talked with some of the Juraians, and they keep talking above the 'Juraian burden.'

"The idea was that they have a duty to enlighten the savage races of the universe."

Washy stared at him. She'd known the Juraians had problems but not that far.

"Well, that is… incredibly condescending," said Naja.

"I know," said Mikamo. "They keep talking about how they'll prove themselves better than the Khalai. They want to 'civilize' their enemies instead of destroying them. The whole rivalry with the Tal'darim has become an arena to prove ourselves superior to the Khalai.

"So even if we win every battle, we'll botch the occupation."

"We might not," said Washu.

"Yes we will," said Mikamo flatly. "The plan has already been laid out down to the tiniest detail in the minds of the nobility. The problem is that the plan wasn't made for the real world. It exists in a deluded fantasy land where Jurai is the ultimate moral authority in the universe. A place where, after we defeat their armies, the Tal'darim will give up their evil ways and become loyal citizens.

"It's a nice thing to think about. But you try an enact it in practice, and it will fall to bits in seconds."

"I don't think you're giving Nesshin his due credit," said Washu. "He's not stupid. There is no way he'll commit to that kind of operation without proper planning."

"I hope so," said Mikamo.

"Hang on a sec, maybe we could ask Aldaris for help," said Naja.

"You want to call the Khalai in?" asked Washu. "Wouldn't that defeat the purpose of the war in the first place?"

"No, I mean, ask for advice," said Naja. "I mean, Aldaris has been leading a war against the Nerazim and has conquered several planets. So he's got to have loads of experience with occupying protoss held worlds. We could ask for some pointers."

"The Conclave has never once occupied a Nerazim world, Naja," said Mikamo.

"Well, how can that be?" asked Naja. "Aldaris conquered a colony just recently. I saw it in the news."

"When the Conclave takes a Nerazim world they exterminate the populace." said Mikamo. "Then they let the khala sort them out. Then they bring in colonists from Aiur. I'm told the Nerazim have a similar policy."

There was dead silence.

"…Oh," said Naja, before laughing nervously. "So, um, who's up for the Juraian Burden?"

"I'd settle for neither, personally," said Mikamo.

"I'll drink to that," said Washu. "Waiter! More coffee!"

Coffee could fix any problem. Washu just hoped they had enough to head this thing off.

* * *

 **Author's Note:**

So I decided to do a time jump in order to let the characters settle into their new roles. Then establish the net plot point in a reunion. Mikamo was ideal for this purpose since he has his boots on the ground. The plotline with Amame eloping was originally supposed to be its own story arc. Then I realized that including it would drag down the narrative. Amame and her love interest are neither prominent characters in this fic nor in Tenchi Muyo.

So yeah, I off-screened it. Writing is as much about what you don't show as what you show. Sometimes it is better to tell about something after the fact if it does not have any importance. You have to ask yourself 'what is this story about, and does this add or detract from it?'


	29. Sword Tenchi

**Chapter Twenty-nine: Sword Tenchi**

Washu met the Emperor Nesshin on the steps of his palace.

The Jurai Palace was only accessible by ship. On every side for a hundred miles were row after row of beautiful trees, infused with the will of Tsunami. It was a sacred forest that separated the palace from all other cities.

The palace itself was like a city. There were servants, artisans, soldiers, poets and politicians in the place. It was designed to be entirely self-sufficient and was manned by the most trusted of people.

Nesshin himself was looking in a fouler mood than usual. In Washu's communications with him over the last century or two. She'd noticed his temper had become steadily shorter. "Emperor Nesshin, you called?"

"Yes Washu, I was hoping to ask how your experiments with the jewels was going." Said Nesshin.

"Well, I've managed to access a lot more of the energy." Said Washu, wondering why he'd called her here to ask just that. "But the power within them is immense, larger than anything I've ever seen. I don't think there are any devices in the known universe which could channel the full power of it."

"How is that possible?" asked Nesshin. "Surely the gems themselves are a device."

"Well, from what I gather, the gems are not fully three-dimensional in nature." Said Washu.

Nesshin eyed her carefully. "What do you mean?"

"What I mean to say is that I think they are manifestations of a much more powerful force." Said Washu. "One that has manifested directly within a lower plane of existence. If so, it would certainly explain why no one can use them."

"Then they are beyond use?" guessed Nesshin.

"Not necessarily." Said Washu. "I've been working on some theories. With the right materials I think I could create a creature capable of wielding the gems. The trick would be to combine different powers to create something greater than the sum of its parts.

"Why do you ask?"

Nesshin sighed. "We're about to go to war, Washu."

"With the Tal'Darim?" guessed Washu. The writing had been on the wall for the last decade.

"Yes." Said Nesshin. "Our humiliation by them has stung for a long time and now, at last, we are ready for retribution. More importantly, we need access to the Breathe of Creation if we are to continue our experiments."

"Have you consulted Tsunami on this, Nesshin?" asked Washu.

"Yes, of course." Said Nesshin. "She has said that we may act as we will, so long as we do all we can to avoid needless bloodshed. The Tal'Darim often raid undefended planets outside our jurisdiction. There is certainly precedent."

"You don't sound confident." Noted Washu.

"I was hoping I might gain your assistance in this." Admitted Nesshin. "You see, if there is no mortal device capable of wielding the gems, there may be an immortal one."

"You want me to ask Tsunami to create a weapon to contain the jewels." Guessed Washu.

"No," said Nesshin. "Tsunami has asked for you to help her do it. With that kind of power this war could be brought to a swift end and many lives could be saved."

"Well I'm sure there are plenty of ethical implications." Admitted Washu. "But this sounds like an interesting experiment."

"Then follow me." Said Nesshin.

He led Washu into the palace, a place she'd been only a few times. But soon they left behind the passages and decorations and entered a hall made of living wood. Down and down they went, until at last they were within an earthy hall. There was power here, power beyond comprehension and at the far end was a tree. It was majestically beautiful and surrounded by a pool of water.

"I've never been this far within the palace before." Said Washu.

"Very few have." Said Nesshin. "Only the most trusted subordinates of Jurai have ever been here."

Then the water moved and out of it emerged an ethereal spectre. "You have come, Nesshin. And you have brought Washu with you."

"I have." Said Nesshin, bowing his head. "Tsunami."

"So, you're the all-powerful goddess of Jurai huh?" said Washu. "Love what you've done with the place."

"You have never been here before." Said Tsunami, formless but with the voice of a woman.

"I know, I was joking." Said Washu, wondering how Tsunami would look analyzed.

Tsunami paused for a moment. "…Thank you. However, I can tell you are not convinced."

"I don't see any reason why this weapon needs to be made, to be honest." Said Washu. "I don't like making weapons at all and the Tal'Darim aren't that serious a threat." Why had she felt the need to bring the jewels anyway? It had seemed important that she bring them, somehow.

"The Tal'Darim are a symptom." Said Tsunami. "In the darkness of the universe, a power is gathering strength. One that could threaten all creation. The weapon I wish to create would be a means of countering it."

"And what do you want me to do?" asked Washu.

"Cast the gems into this pool and I will create a device that shall rend heaven and earth, should the need arise." Said Tsunami.

Washu frowned. This didn't seem like Tsunami at all. Or, well, what Washu had heard about Tsunami. "I'm not sure I want to rend heaven and earth, Tsunami."

"Don't you want to see what will happen?" asked Tsunami, voice playful.

"I do." Admitted Washu. "But I'm also reluctant to take science too far. Experiments that cannot be safely performed take special precautions."

"I assure you, what I am going to do is not dangerous at all." Said Tsunami.

Well, she was an omnipotent goddess. Washu drew out the gems and considered it. "Fair enough."

Then she tossed the gems in.

For a moment all went dark as if the light had been sucked out. Then out of the water emerged a beam of light and then a hilt it was coming from. A single, naked arm held the blade aloft and sent it spinning through the air to land in the stone, buzzing. In its pommel were the three jewels, gleaming.

"I give you, Sword Tenchi." Said Tsunami ."So long as the three gems are within this sword, the wielder shall have no equal in battle. Armies may wash against them and still make no progress."

"Great." Said Washu, creating some readings. "Now I think you know exactly what I am going to ask of you, Tsunami."

"Of course." Said Tsunami. "Take the gems. They are yours to do with as you will."

As Washu drew the gems out, Nesshin frowned.

"You have a problem, Nesshin?" asked Tsunami.

"What was the point of creating this device if you're just going to disassemble it right afterward?" asked Nesshin.

"The Sword is for later." Admitted Tsunami. "And there would not have been another chance to wield it. For now, it is a means by which the power of the gems can be contained should the need arise. And even without the gems, it is powerful indeed.

"Think of it as a precaution."

Nesshin reached forward and took up the sword in one hand. He marveled at the blade for a moment, then sheathed it and put it away. Then he turned to leave.

"Nesshin, I'm concerned about your intentions in this invasion." Said Tsunami. Nesshin glanced back. "What of them?"

"You have encouraged the Juraian court to spread news of this… Juraian Burden. And you have done so against my advice." Said Tsunami.

"It is nothing more than a pretense." Scoffed Nesshin. "I have no illusions that it will affect our foreign policy in any meaningful way."

"Nesshin, even a pretense can have power." Said Tsunami. "If you base your war on a lie that war may haunt you."

"And what do you propose I do then?" asked Nesshin. "Surely you know the best possible course of action already."

"I do, but not in this incarnation." Said Tsunami. "My presence within Jurai's tree network understands my will. But it cannot comprehend the full extent of my higher selves perception.

"As for what I propose, the invasion is necessary. The Tal'Darim have grown bolder and if left unchecked may well become too powerful to stop. But I think you should adopt an ideology that is less condescending. It may help with relations."

"I will take it under advisement." Said Nesshin. "Washu, will you attend the war meeting?"

"No, Nesshin, I won't." said Washu. "I don't approve of war as a concept or in practice. Especially when you're doing it for crude materials that are sacred to someone else's culture."

"You are only too happy to build the devices we are using, Washu." Noted Nesshin. "And I was perfectly plain with you on what I intended to do with them."

"Nesshin, I created a series of devices designed to cut through hardened materials." Said Washu. "They could be put to much better use mining asteroids, or doing demolition work. Or carving metal to make cruise liners to enrich people's lives instead of ending them.

"Military technology can be used for much better things than what you want to do with them."

"And what would you suggest, Washu?" asked Nesshin. "Three hundred soldiers lost their lives in the Battle of Kuramitsu. One hundred civilians were killed as well. To say nothing of the fifty-eight Juraians, many of whom were nobility.

"Am I supposed to forgive an attack of that size? And need I remind you that you more than had a hand in all this happening in the first place."

"I know." Said Washu, remembering their reckless mission. "It was a serious mistake going to Bel'Shir and the fact that I benefited from the end result doesn't make it better. I think that if you were realty concerned with helping the Tal'Darim, an invasion wouldn't be your first choice."

Then Tsunami made a small noise. Washu looked to her in concern. "Is something wrong?"

"It's nothing, Washu." Said Tsunami. "I have been peering across the universe. My gaze has fallen on a world called Earth."

"The experiment initiated by Emperor Tenchi. What of them?" asked Nesshin.

"They've created bronze weapons." Said Tsunami. "A battle has just finished moments ago where ten-thousand men were killed."

Washu stared in horror. "Ten thousand?! You've got to be seeing false readings."

"I'm afraid it's all too accurate." Said Nesshin. "Earth is a hell. Without any kind of deity their society advances at a snails crawl."

"But ten-thousand? That's worse casualties than any battle ever fought." Said Washu. "Any war! Even the Khalai Nerazim conflict has never had casualties that high in a single battle. Killing ten-thousand protoss would be like exterminating a dozen of the smaller colonies.

"How could one planet have that many casualties in a single day."

"The number was far higher." Said Tsunami. "That was only one battle. Many others are being fought as we speak, to say nothing or murders and rapes."

"How can any population sustain that?" asked Washu.

"Humans are used to death." Said Nesshin. "Every waking moment can be their last. If they break their ankle, no medical technology exists that can save them. If they are cut and a wound becomes infected, they die. Death is as common to them as life. And with their shorter lifespans, they often have children as young as fifteen."

"Nesshin, why the hell aren't you trying to fix Earth if that kind of thing has been going on?" said Washu, finding herself horrified. If this was true, then Earth held a significant percentage of the deaths of sentients each year.

What could that do to a race?

"Two reasons." Said Nesshin. "First, Tsunami has forbidden it for reasons far higher than this plane of existence. I gather there is some kind of divine wager going on.

"And second, I wouldn't know where to start.

"This is partially why I want to deal with the Tal'Darim now. If the Earthlings ever get to our level I want to have some experience dealing with their sort."

"The Tal'Darim have never killed that many people in a single day." Said Washu. "Their highest body count on record is two-thousand and that was during a crusade."

"So you see why I want Jurai to have some experience in dealing with blood-crazed lunatics." Said Nesshin. "If humanity ever reaches the stars we are going to have to fight them."

"When they reach the stars." Said Tsunami.

"What makes you so sure they won't blow themselves up, Tsunami?" asked Washu.

"Humanity lacks the destructive capability of other races." Said Tsunami. "At present, they are incapable of destroying themselves. And they are learning, if slowly. I am confident they will reach the stars within a few thousand years."

"…Well then, we'll provide them a proper Juraian greeting." Said Nesshin.

Washu had once heard a saying that a hundred people dying had a less emotional effect than one person with a name. She wasn't sure what to think now. Ten thousand in one battle, one that wasn't even important. It was madness, insanity. How could a species with casualties like that even exist? Why would they even want to exist?

Washu had a sinking feeling the Nesshin was right. Earth was going to be a problem.

* * *

 **Author's Note:**

So this chapter is somewhat illuminating. More advanced species in this universe have the same problems as Earth. What they don't have are those problems on such a scale.

They also have a much lower birth rate, since children are more or less guaranteed to survive. Nor have they ever faced the kind of full scale mobilization for war that humans did in World War 1. The Khalai and Nerazim have the closest equivalent, in the Aeon of Strife. But even they rarely see the kind of mass bloodletting humans experience.


	30. Bel'Shir Occupied

**Chapter Thirty: Bel'Shir Occupied**

The inside of the Juraian transport ship was oddly silent as Washu stared out the window. Below she could see the city of the Tal'Darim, the capital of the whole planet. Most of the older structures were sharp and angular. Like whoever designed them was trying to disembowel the sky. But there were newer ones, Juraian tree structures growing upward.

The two kinds of buildings seemed to wrestle far below. Washu sighed and looked up to the television. There a newscaster was speaking. "And in other news, Emperor Nesshin won another stunning victory against the Tal'Darim. Several thousand Tal'Darim were taken prisoner, and few casualties were sustained. Unfortunately, the chaos of the battle was immense. As such, saving the crew of enemy vessels became difficult.

"As a result, nearly three hundred people died on both sides. It is clear that war is not without cost."

Three hundred in an intergalactic war. As opposed to tens of thousands in a border skirmish. It was almost impressive, and Washu simply couldn't comprehend. How could any species willing commit that kind of atrocity on one another?

"Mind if I turn this off?" asked Washu, looking to the only other person.

She was a green-haired woman with big, blue eyes. She glanced up in surprise. "No, I don't mind."

Washu typed in her console and quickly shut off the tv. She looked at her temporary companions. "So, where are you heading?"

"Well, I'm finding work as a mechanic." said the girl. "There are a lot of job opportunities opening up with the colonization effort."

"Why not just use locals?" asked Washu.

"Well, the locals don't understand Jurai tech, and we aren't sure they're ready to accept us." admitted the woman. "For security reasons, offworlders are needed to keep the colony running.

"It pays well, and, well, I'd love to see other worlds."

"Right," said Washu. "Hey, what's your name?"

"Sorna." said the woman. "I'm from Geminar."

Washu drew out her latest invention, a small capsule, and tossed it to him. "Catch."

"What's this?" asked the woman.

"Energy field generator. Should come in handy if anything happens," said Wahsu. "You press this, and the shield surrounds you.

"It could save your life.

"Oh, and don't test it. The thing only has one charge."

"Thanks." said the woman.

They landed, and Washu stood. Glancing at the woman, she realized she would probably never see her again. With a nod, she stepped out onto the landing platform and was lost in the cloud. It was odd how a single meeting, insignificant, could catch in your mind.

Soon enough, Washu was approached by a stunningly, beautiful, green-haired woman. She was dressed in flowing white robes and had rather significant assets below the neck. At her sides were armed guards, masked. "Washu, welcome to Bel'shir. I'm Princess Seto of the Jurai Royal Family, and I'm glad you decided to come to help us."

"I wasn't expecting an armed escort," said Washu, wondering just what had been going on.

Then again, at the rate Nesshin was beating the Tal'Darim up, they would move to guerilla tactics soon. Mikamo had given her the data. Seto looked to either side. "These are... an unfortunate necessity.

"Our conquest of Bel'Shir was rapid and complete. However, a large portion of the population is trained for battle. We're still dealing with a small number of insurgents.

"It should have settled down in a few weeks, but for now, you'll need to go to the facility under guard." She motioned, and they walked away, making for a luxury air car.

"I heard the attack went perfectly," said Washu.

"Better than perfect, actually," said Seto, a note of professional pride in his voice. We killed the Second Ascendant and destroyed his fleet in the harbor. Our troops are searching for Third Ascendant Malrath, but we suspect that he is off-world."

She opened the door on the car and motioned. Washu got in and began immediately scanning the car out of habit. She found something, rather cleverly hidden, and immediately got to work/ "Thanks. I can tell this is going to be... productive. Is Naja here?"

"She'll meet us at the station," said Seto, getting in after her. "What are you doing?"

Washu typed a bit more. "Bomb disarmed."

"Bomb?" asked Seto blinking.

"Yeah, someone set up explosives beneath this car," said Washu as it started. "Had to work to disarm it."

Seto froze. "...I think I'm going to have to check my security."

"You do that," said Washu, leaning back in her seat. "shouldn't you have been scanning for this kind of thing?"

"They've never tried anything that indirect before," said Seto. "And I did have my guards watching for it. Obviously, I'll have to make adjustments."

Washu did not respond. Perring out the window, she looked down to a courtyard where a protoss was filling canisters. It was like a fuel station, but it seemed to be like a sacred ritual. "So, what's the deal down there?"

"Oh, that," said Seto, shuddering. "They are selling Breathe of Creation.

"It's used for religious rituals regularly. Every family needs at least some of it.

"Actually...

"It's probably for the best if we discuss that in the safety of the lab."

Washu shrugged and proceeded to sleep most of the rest of the way. When they finally arrived, she stepped out and met Naja. Quickly she hugged her. "Naja, it's been a while."

"Yes, I know," said Naja. Washu looked at her and saw bags under her eyes.

"You look terrible," said Washu. "What happened?"

"I've had a long day," said Naja, before coughing violently. "Why don't we move on?"

Washu walked behind her into the lab. It was one of the new buildings, and Washu saw a number of protoss radiating hostility. There was a psionic sort of malice around them that she didn't like one bit. Obviously, the occupation would be harder than the conquer. "So, how has the research been going?"

"Well," said Naja, evasively, before coughing. "Sorry, I, I picked up a bad cold. My system hasn't adjusted to it yet."

"Bel'Shir is crawling with diseases," said Seto. "We've been working overtime to quell the infections. Three people have even died."

Three people.

Washu remembered a statistic on the number of earthlings who died from diseases. Thousand died every day, and yet they felt like three men dying was a tragedy. It was why she'd asked for that favor before agreeing to come here.

"We've been working with the Breathe of Creation a lot, and well... it seems like it is more than I ever expected it to be," said Naja miserably.

"What do you mean?" asked Washu.

"You see, it's of incredible religious significance to that Tal'Darim, Washu," said Naja. "They believe it is a means of communing with their god, and, well, I think there may be something to that."

They entered into a huge, darker room. Throughout it were vats of red liquid. Yet there was a sort of aura in the place. It was like what the Tal'drim had projected their way. The scientists here hurried back and forth. They glanced back as if they thought they were being followed.

"Wow, this place is nice." lied Washu, trying to lighten the mood. "Has a real mad scientist vibe to it."

"Thanks," said Naja. "Anyway, all our research actually has led to a lot of fruit." Then she drew out a datapad and brought up a contract on it. "I need you to sign this."

"What is this?" asked Washu.

"This information is classified, Washu," said Seto. "We need your signed agreement that you will not disclose any of it without permission."

"Scientific knowledge is something that should be shared with everyone," said Washu, somewhat offended at the idea.

"Maybe," said Seto. "But if the protoss learned some of the things we have, we'd lose a serious advantage."

"Fine," said Washu, quickly putting in her signature. "Now, what is the deal here?"

"Follow me," said Naja.

Washu followed her, sick of the secrecy, into another, deeper chamber. This one only had one tank and a series of strange devices. The presence now seemed like outright malice, and Washu looked back. She was half-expecting someone to be creeping behind with a knife. But there was no one there. "What...

"Something is wrong here."

"I know the feeling," said Naja. "You get used to it.

"You see, the Tal'Darim believe that the Breathe of Creation is attuned with their god, Amon. Many of us had believed it to be nothing more than superstition. However, recent events have made us think there may be something to it."

"There are only three Chousin Goddesses, Naja," said Washu.

"We believe Amon may be a lesser deity, pretending to be a comparable one," said Seto. "Efforts are underway to deprogram the Tal'Darim from their worship.

"However, the potential uses for the Breathe of Creation are immense."

"So why are you telling me this?" asked Washu.

"We'd like permission to use one of the gems," said Naja.

Washu drew up her gems. "Hmm, these? Why?"

"Our experiments are about to become far riskier," said Naja. "Several of our staff have had to take long periods off. More have outright resigned. A few who did neither had breakdowns.

"We're hoping we can use the gem to counteract the effects of this... presence."

"Well, I'm going to be working here anyway," said Washu. "Why do you need my help?"

They shared a look.

"Well, actually Washu, we'd prefer you focus on other pursuits," said Seto.

"What pursuits?" asked Washu.

"We'd like you to work on learning Tal'Darim technology," said Seto. "We're hoping to see if it can be made compatible with our own.

"Naja is more than sufficient for directing things here."

"Right, right, I take your point," said Washu, drawing out the gem. "Proper use of resources. Catch." She tossed the gem, and Naja snatched it quickly.

"Are you sure you should be tossing those things around?" said Seto, looking petrified.

"Don't worry," said Washu. "They're pretty much unbreakable. Just don't use these things in anything except security, or I'm taking it back."

"Thank you, Washu," said Naja, looking better in only a moment.

"Now then, I have one price for my help here," said Washu. "I said I wanted a favor in our earlier conversation, and I'll tell you what it is?"

"What is it?" asked Seto.

"I want clearance to observe Earth," said Washu.

Seto blinked. "You can feel free to make use of the observation-"

"No, I don't mean observation domes," said Washu. "I want to go down there in secret and see what things are like."

"...That's a difficult thing you're asking of me, Washu," said Seto. "I'll have to clear it with the Emperor."

"Aw come on, Nesshin's a big old softy," said Washu. "And I'd like to get an idea of how earthlings think. I work here for my ten-year contract, then I check things out."

"Alright, Washu. I'll see what I can do," said Seto. "Now, maybe I should take you to your team."

"Great," said Washu.

Ten years working here. Not too long, and she'd get to examine Tal'Darim tech while being closer to Naja. Nothing too bad, and at the end of things, she could try going where no one had gone before. Earth.

Washu was in a good mood.

* * *

Clay was in a foul mood.

He'd contracted several minor sicknesses on the last world Tokimi had sent him to. Worse still, he'd found very little. Now he was coming to Bel'Shir. While it promised to be interesting, he was only too conscious of what had happened last time. It was to his benefit that the Tal'Darim fleet was scattered, but the memory was fresh in his mind.

"Zero, what have you found?" asked Clay.

Zero looked to him, her robotic form shifting. "Dr. Clay, I am observing events on Bel'Shir. As Lady Tokimi predicted, the Tal'Darim have been defeated. However, my scans appear to be distorted."

"What do you mean?" asked Clay. She'd become far more observant of things since his modifications.

"This entire world radiates with an energy type that distorts my instruments," said Zero. "I am concerned that gazing too deeply into it may have unfortunate side effects."

"That would be the Breathe of Creation." guessed Clay. "And it is precisely those qualities that make it necessary for us to investigate it.

"Still, we have time. And there is no sense in rushing an investigation.

"For now, I want you to begin taking samples from all those who enter this world. Lady Tokimi wishes us to create a report on the effects the Breathe of Creation has on various races."

"Is it not possible that Lady Tokimi already knows as much?" asked Zero.

Clay was pleased he could rely on her to ask important questions. An outside perspective was necessary, even for one of his genius. She was, perhaps, his greatest creation, and it would be difficult to exceed her. "Possible, perhaps.

"But knowing and understanding are two different things. As I have said, anything can be understood, you merely need the right perspective. I believe that Tokimi's limitations are based on her status as an outsider.

"As a divine being, who has always been far beyond the scope of normal understanding. She may understand the function of creation without comprehending its purpose."

"Are they not the same thing, Doctor?" asked Zero.

Clay looked up. "Really Zero, I thought I had programmed you better than that. A factory is designed to produce a product en masse. But the production is not an end in itself. Rather, it is merely a means by which that product is provided for one purpose or another."

"Is it not also conceivable that the Breathe of Creation is something outside of her control?" asked Zero.

Clay frowned. Such a question would be difficult to ask without meeting Tokimi directly. "That is a possibility, I will grant you. Given the situation, we have no way of knowing. We will simply have to mind the task at hand and hope we discover the answer.

"Tell me, how goes the process of translating the information we received from D3."

"It is a difficult thing indeed, Doctor Clay," said Zero. "I suspect that learning all of the information on it would take a great amount of time. Only a slightly smaller duration than discovering it in field research. And field research would provide the benefits of practical experience."

"I see," said Clay. "That is unfortunate, but the information is still of use. I want you to focus your efforts on elements of the universe that are difficult for us to observe. Black holes, dark matter, and such." He paused as something occurred to him. "...Actually, that may hold answers.

"Check for all information on the Breathe of Creation. Get me a complete analysis. We will then check the information against our findings here."

"You wish to verify this data logs accuracy?" asked Zero.

"Never take anything for granted until you have more than one source, Zero," said Clay. "To do less is just bad science."

Zero nodded. An unnecessary but not unwelcome tick she had picked up. "Yes, Doctor Clay."

* * *

 **Author's Note:**

So originally, I was going to focus on the epic battle to take Bel'Shir and show Seto earning her spurs. Then I realized Washu was the main character. Plus, most people will want to get to the Starcraft part of this fic sometime this millennium.

So I skipped it.

Ultimately, the war is merely the backdrop to the actual story. It is not yet the center of the conflict.


	31. Vacation!

**Chapter Thirty-One: Vacation!**

Washu finishes the last changes, installed the developer, and then there was a beep. Even as Mikamo came through the door, Washu leaped in triumph as the machine whirred to life. "And that's it. The final project is now one hundred and ten percent done!"

Mikamo looked at her as he came up. "What do you mean, one hundred and ten percent?"

"An extra ten percent for the extra days I spent on it," said Washu. "My contract expired a few weeks ago, remember?"

"Right, sorry," said Mikamo. "The Galaxy Police has been working overtime, with the Juraian Fleet off fighting. Even if we're still strong, without fear of the Jurai Power, pirates are more criminal.

"I actually busted a human trafficking ring a few days ago." He spun out his pistol for show, then sheathed it in the same moment. Showoff. "So, do you want to get going?"

"Nah, I've got to pay Naja a visit before-" began Washu. And then she paused as Naja walked through the door as well. She was wearing black now and looked nice in it. Washu looked at her in surprise. "Oh, Naja, we were just talking about you. How have you been?" She hadn't seen her in a week.

"Well, I figured I'd come to see if you needed any help," said Naja, evasively. She seemed reluctant, somehow. "Nah, just finished," said Washu. "Anything else?"

"Right, um, could you give me a hand with something?" asked Naja in a low tone. "Oh, Mikamo, you're here." Had she just noticed him? What was up?

"Yes, I am," said Mikamo. "How have you been?"

"Busy," said Naja. "Work has been a nightmare. A couple of days ago, some Tal'Darim tried to raid the facility, and some people were hurt. They don't like what we are doing."

"You know I finished my job a few hours ago," said Washu, who hadn't had any such trouble. What had Naja been doing?

"I know, but this just came up, and it's kind of important," said Naja. "It's the Breathe of Creation security system. Ever since Lady Seto left, we've had some... problems."

"Again?" asked Washu. "Well, I guess the last time was six years ago. What went wrong this time?" She'd thought she'd settled all the problems last time. Back when the machinery had gone haywire, and air almost got sucked out of the facility. That hadn't been fun.

"I was hoping you could tell me," admitted Naja. Washu sighed. "Fine, fine. Show me the way." They moved to go, but Naja quickly raised a hand to Mikamo. "Mikamo, I'll have to ask you not to follow us into the lab. Sorry, this is need to know stuff, and I'd need to get all kinds of permission." Mikamo halted for a moment.

"...Right, sure. I'll wait on the ship." said Mikamo, before walking off.

Jurai was getting secretive, wasn't it? Washu didn't like this new side to them. It meant they either didn't want to share the information. Or it was doing something so dangerous that it didn't dare risk a leak. Neither one was to her liking. Even so, she made her way through the facility to the restricted section. Within, she found scientists masked as they experimented with Breathe of Creation. Within an enclosed space, two Juraian warriors were wielding unstable and dark blades. "Oh, so you finally learned to channel the thing," said Washu.

"We found the techniques for channeling Breathe of Creation," admitted Naja. "After that, we had to spend a few more years learning to use it. It operates on different principles to the Jurai power. The stuff utilizes negative emotions, rather than protective instincts. Anger, aggression, that sort of thing.

"The offensive capabilities of these projects are immense." She sighed. "We actually have put some of our warriors into the field. They have far higher rankings than the normal kind."

"So is that a problem?" asked Washu. "No, it's not," said Naja. "Actually, we've learned massive amounts. The techniques we use to manipulate it have made it into standard techniques. Even without the stuff, it's made our ordinary warriors far more deadly. "Actually, that's the problem."

"What?" asked Washu.

"All warriors who utilize the Breathe of Creation become more aggressive," said Naja. "They have far higher kills ratios. It's not that they've gone psychotic, they just, well, aren't as careful. Some of them also demonstrate an alarming lack of empathy while off service. Practical jokes become crueler, that sort of thing. Of course, we've accounted for that."

She reached a door and pressed a gem to open it. Within was Washu's gem, floating high above an altar. It poured energy into the systems, radiating power.

"How?" asked Washu, curious.

"Nesshin ordered those using the stuff to be immediately relieved from service. He's paying for their therapy and longterm health care, just in case," said Naja. "Our next batch of trainees are of far more mild temperament. They'll also be sent only into the absolute worst battles. Places where a death here or there is acceptable.

"They're all fully aware of the risks, of course. And we've perfected the doses now."

Washu didn't answer that. Instead, she focused on scanning the devices and beginning the correction process. She frowned, surprised at how deep the damage was while being superficially fine. "Well, as far as I can tell, this machinery has been worked to the bone. Geeze, I never expected this to fail so quickly. This Breathe of Creation stuff really is a hardcore substance, isn't it?"

"You have no idea," said Naja.

"So how's the fuel going?" asked Washu.

"Actually, we've already put it to good use," said Naja. "And even if we hadn't, it's vastly expanded our understanding of metaphysics."

"Why?" asked Washu.

"Well, the Emperor has-" began Naja.

And then Azaka walked into the room. Naja halted as the knight walked into place, frowning. Everyone in this place was frowning, weren't they. It seemed like this stuff made everyone miserable. "The Emperor has had us attempting to reach the spirits beyond the veil."

Washu paused and looked up hard at the man. "Why not have a chat with Tsunami?"

"Tsunami is a Goddess, making contact with us, lowering herself to our nature," said Azaka. "In addition, we have no guarantee that the information she gives us is accurate. While we trust her, it is possible that she does not understand certain aspects of her own dimension. Just as we don't understand ours."

"And you think you can learn better?" asked Washu.

"We believe that we can expand our knowledge through research," said Naja, annoyed. "And don't get self-righteous with me, Washu. Nesshin consulted her on this before taking any action, and she authorized it. Tsunami is fine with us trying to understand the dimensions as long as we go about it in an ethical fashion."

"We don't believe Tsunami is mistaken, or deceiving us in any way, of course," said Azaka. "Emperor Nesshin merely wishes to have secondary confirmation. Just in case."

Washu didn't fully believe that. "Do you even know what you'd be making contact with?"

"The first space-fairers didn't know what they would find. It's about the same," said Naja. "The first experiment, well, it went down yesterday."

Washu smiled, putting down the sense of panic. "And you didn't invite me?"

"Oh come on, Washu, I can handle this," said Naja.

"Yeah, I guess that's why my security system has been wrecked," said Washu, annoyed. "What happened here?"

"The process was a failure," admitted Naja. "Our attempts put too much strain on the instruments, and we nearly tore open an unstable portal. Fixing it nearly-"

"Say no more," said Washu, finishing up her alterations. It took a lot of power on her part. "Alright, have it your way. But you are not doing any more experiments until I get back from Earth."

"You are in no position to-" began Azaka.

"Uh, yes, I am!" snapped Washu at her wit's end. "You're using my private property as a lynchpin for safety concerns. And somehow, you nearly ripped a hole in the fabric of reality even with it.

"I insist on being present for any more of these experiments.

"And if you don't like it, I'll take my gems, and you can find some other security measure. And when the planet collapses in on itself, we'll know exactly who to blame." What scared Washu was that nobody learned about this.

"Washu is right," said Naja. "We need all the hands we can get on this, and you know it, Azaka. You keep pressing me to go further with this, but we have no idea what we're doing. Even with Washu, we'll have our work cut out for us. We're going to need months to fix all this anyway, so we're not going to be delayed."

"...Very well then, I'll see to it that Lady Seto is informed," said Azaka. "However, she might not be pleased."

"Thank you," said Washu. "Now, if you guys are done, I've got a journey to the unexplored regions of Earth to get to." She finished and turned to walk away.

"Yeah, great vacation," noted Naja, a note of humor in her tone. "Have fun in the most savage and bloodthirsty realm on the planet."

"I will!" said Washu, smiling back.

* * *

Clay was observing the data he had found, feeling somewhat depressed. He could spend multiple lifetimes pouring over all this and never understand it all. He'd always believed that, with proper context and understanding, nothing was beyond science. With the wealth of knowledge supplied him by Tokimi, he now doubted if such a thing would be possible. Could an encyclopedia of all this knowledge ever truly be gathered? You could fill trillions of databooks and only scratch the surface.

It was becoming clear that the mortal perspective was insufficient. The solution, therefore, was to gain an immortals perspective. To exist upon a higher plane of existence.

Emperor Nesshin understood this. Like Clay, he hungered for knowledge and power beyond that which had been bestowed on him. An admirable quality.

"Dr. Clay, have you received the transmission," said Zero.

Startled, Clay looked up and checked his console. Sure enough, there was Zero's data report. His greatest creation had succeeded in bugging Naja's lab. They'd never have been able to find it, let alone infiltrate it undetected. Fortunately, a series of time-space distortions hadn't ripped the sensor net up.

While Jurai had been working to contain the breach, Clay had taken a chance. He'd had the place bugged with nanites. Nothing ventured, nothing gained.

"I have Zero." Clay read it and smiled. "This situation abounds with possibilities."

"Do you wish to act?" asked Zero.

"Not yet," said Clay, remembering the rules. "Our task is to observe and may only make contact in order to gain more information. Much as I would love to pursue my vendetta with Washu, it will simply have to wait.

"I must admit, I wish I were in a position to participate in these experiments."

"Perhaps the Tal'Darim may have some knowledge on the subject," said Zero. "I doubt the savages have any real understanding of the subject," noted Clay, before pausing. The timing of those distortions had been very convenient for him. It was not impossible that some other entity had created them for Clay to find.

"Still, even an imbecile may stumble across the truth now and then. "Zero, that protoss officer we located. Third Ascendant Malrath, was it?"

"He is now Second Ascendant," said Zero.

"Find his coordinates," said Clay, remembering that he'd made a name for himself. Bel'Shir was his homeworld. "I believe we may have some business to discuss."

It was a long term plan, but it could gain Clay the information he needed. And if gaining that information happened to require giving information that hurt Washu? So much the better.

* * *

Washu found Mikamo at the bridge of his ship, fiddling with the controls and checking systems. For a moment, they said nothing as they waited. Finally, Mikamo finished. "Well, we're set to go."

"It's no problem," said Washu. "Listen, about Naja, she's been going through hell lately. That research is really straining her. And Seto just keeps pressing her to go further and further."

"I know, I know," said Mikamo. "I wish she was coming with us. And I also wish we were going somewhere nice. So are you really sure you want to take a vacation to Earth, Washu?"

"Yeah, what's wrong with that?" asked Washu. "You know what," said Mikamo, activating the ship. He began departure into the lower atmosphere. "Most people take vacations on tropical resort planets." "Yeah, a custom-tailored place to be enjoyable," said Washu. "You can't learn anything from those. No, the true purpose of a scientist is in the adventure. To go, both in thought and deed, to new places and document life that no one has seen!

"To boldly go where no one has gone before!" Mikamo tossed a datapad at her.

"Here." Washu narrowly missed it and ended up falling on her face. Picking it and herself up, she rose up, rubbing her head. "What's this?"

"This is a six-hundred-page list of rules Nesshin drew up regarding conduct on Earth." said Mikamo, "As well as the standing rules for dealing with underdeveloped civilizations. Memorize it, because I have."

Washu sighed. "Well, I suppose I have needed a sleep aid." They shot into space and entered war space. Mikamo sighed. "Coordinates set. Great.

"I'm going to go check to make sure the plasma cannon is fine. "Have fun."

And he made his way out. Washu sighed. "Killjoy." Still, at least Washu would have a break from things. Going to the most violent, barbaric place in the universe would be a welcome relief at this rate.

* * *

 **Author's Note:**

So, I've begun to notice a theme in each arc within this story. There seems to be a running theme of science attempting to understand a god. And in the process, gradually acting in defiance to that god's wishes. Kind of weird.


	32. Horror of Normalcy

**Chapter Thirty-Two: Horror of Normalcy**

The ship came out of space, and Washu looked out from the viewport. Gazing down at the small, blue planet below, she marveled at it. Opening scanners, she took a moment to admire it. Over sixty percent of the planet's surface was pure water.

That was a lot higher than most.

"So that's Earth, huh? Way nicer than I was expecting," said Washu. Though it was a sort of miracle that life had developed here at all without gods. "Hmm, the entire planet is covered in an untamed wilderness. Wow, this is so amazing. I can't wait to take some samples.'

"Just remember, we're supposed to avoid direct contact if possible," said Mikamo, scanning. "And if we do have to talk to someone, we have to take on the role of something there."

"Yes, yes, I know Mikamo," said Washu. Then she noticed as Mikamo raised heavy weaponry. "Um, is the plasma cannon really necessary?"

"Yes," said Mikamo, testing the spin.

Washu nodded, scanning before she noticed something. Frowning, she double-checked her data. "That's odd."

"What is?" asked Mikamo.

"Well I'm looking at the Earth, It turns out that there are vast areas of forest that have been destroyed," said Washu. "Miles and miles of forests on record have just up and disappeared since the last report. I've never seen anything like it.

"Are you sure no Earthlings have psychic powers."

"Positive," said Mikamo. "They cut down huge swaths of the trees on their world. Nobody knows why.

"My guess is out of spite."

"Well, I think we'd better find out," said Washu. Then she drew out her new devices and tossed one to Mikamo, who caught it. "Take this; we're going incognito."

"What are these?" asked Mikamo.

"These devices transmit a subconscious wavelength. It makes people view the one wearing it as ordinary," said Washu. "I used to use them when I wanted to be left alone to read back home."

"We're not supposed to interfere," said Mikamo flatly.

"We're not going to interfere," said Washu. "Just... ask a few questions. This thing will translate our speech and mannerism to reflect the time. We'll appear a bit eccentric, at worst."

Mikamo paused. "...Fine, have it your way.

"But I'm staying up here."

"What?" said Washu. "Why?"

"So that I can pull you out if you get into a bad situation," said Mikamo.

"Oh come on, don't you want to see Earth?" asked Washu.

"Not really," admitted Mikamo.

"Why did you even bring a chaingun if you weren't going to go down there?" asked Washu.

"Pirates sometimes set up operations here," said Mikamo. "There are sensors in place to warn if anyone lands on earth. But almost nobody ever comes here.

"So, sometimes, they have meetings in orbit around this world to trade narcotics."

"Mikamo, do you really think there is anything down there that can threaten me?" asked Washu. "And if there is, couldn't we just contact the ship remotely while blasting it with a chain gun?"

Mikamo remained silent for a long moment, before finally snapping. "...Fine, I'll come along. Let's just get this over with."

"Why are you in such a bad mood?" asked Washu.

"This war with the Tal'Darim is stupid," said Mikamo finally. "We made our point taking Bel'Shir, but the Tal'Darim refuse to get it. Things have been heating up out there. It's gotten to the point where someone gets killed in every battle.

"People are starting to... take things personally. A few Juraian Nobles have even sworn revenge on people who killed their friends."

"What?" said Washu. "Are you... are you serious? We've actually got people sacrificing their well-being to get back at someone?"

"Yeah," said Mikamo. "We've had a few blood feuds over the years over murders. But it was nothing that a formal duel couldn't settle. But now we have people swearing vengeance because a soldier on the other side killed a soldier.

"This conflict is corrupting us.

"Now we're heading down to Earth, the absolute center of all that stuff. It's not something I want to see more of."

Washu decided to come clean with this. "Listen, Mikamo, I didn't just want to come down here because I was interested. I also did it because Earth is a model for the worst-case scenario. If we can find out what causes them to be so bloodthirsty, maybe we can isolate the same elements in ourselves.

"That's why this is important.

"Acknowledging a problem is the first step to solving it. If you pretend it isn't happening, you just let it grow."

Mikamo sighed. "Right, right.

"Let's go."

They activated the devices.

"Now, I figure we ought to start with the deforestation," said Washu.

"Why there?" asked Mikamo.

"Well, nothing like that has happened on any of the worlds we've had contact with," said Washu. "Sometimes trees have to be transplanted or even cut down in an emergency. But this kind of mass destruction only happens with natural disasters. And weather control prevents those."

"Well, it's better than starting with the battles, I guess," said Mikamo.

And down they went.

Washu picked a region near the sea, a place with many trees. Walking across it, she saw a place where a forest had been leveled. There were stumps, thousands upon thousands of stumps, all having been cut down near the base. It was breathtaking and horrific, like watching spaceships collide.

You knew you shouldn't be watching something so horrible, but you couldn't look away.

Washu shook her head. This was about science. Kneeling down by the tree, she performed some scans. "Hmm, from the looks of things, these have been cut down, all near the trunk. The cut is rough like they used a dull blade repeatedly." Several more scans provided her with information. "...That isn't..."

"What is it?" asked Mikamo.

"The plants here lack the regenerative capabilities of other worlds," said Washu. "According to my scans, most of the plants and animals in this entire region are dying or in terrible health. There are hundreds of people dying in the surrounding through population centers. Villages, I think.

"And of those who aren't dying, most are in bad health. They have sicknesses we could cure in a heartbeat."

"This is all well-documented," said Mikamo.

"Yes, yes, I know," said Washu. "But the data I read... well..." She widened her scanned. "If these scans are representative of Earth as a whole, our estimates are far, far worse. There isn't a single human for miles over the age of sixty.

"Most are under thirty.

"Could the average life expectancy really be that low?"

"Maybe we should focus," said Mikamo.

"Right, right," said Washu, looking over the stumps. "Why would they need to cut down so many of these, though? Theoretically, wood could be used as a building material, but these were all cut recently."

"No idea," admitted Mikamo. "They are Earthlings."

"That is not a scientific explanation, Mikamo," said Washu. "Saying that a given group has a bad habit because they are who they are doesn't help.

"Nobody does anything without reason." Making her way through the fields, Washu eventually came to a tree that was still standing. It was ancient, perhaps a hundred years old. And yet there was no innate energy coming from it.

Somehow that seemed wrong.

She was just about to begin taking scans when she heard a voice. "You there, you'd best step away."

Turning around, Washu looked and saw humans. Except... it was like they weren't there. As if she was only looking at an empty shell. The life energy that radiated from all living things was nonexistent from them. Many of them had physical issues, parasites, bones that hadn't healed right. Scar tissue untreated.

Washu caught her breath. "Why? I'm looking at this tree."

"Yes, well, we've got to cut it down." said the man.

"Why?" asked Washu, looking back. "This tree is hundreds of years old."

"The Great King orders, of course." said the leader. "Haven't you heard?"

Washu focused her eyes and was able to pick out the one speaking. It was as if the people before her didn't even exist. It was hard to differentiate between them without life force. The leader or she thought he was the lead, had black hair and a short beard. His skin was tan, and he and his men held long tools with metalheads.

Those were probably what had been used to hack things down.

"We've been... out of touch," said Washu, shuddering. This place, it was... wrong. All of it was wrong.

"Well, you can step away from there, and I'll explain it." said the leader. "My men have work to do and little time to do it."

Washu nodded and stepped aside, realizing too late that she was letting them destroy the tree. Something that could not be replicated for centuries. No interfering, she reminded herself, and she tried to put on a bold appearance. She barely managed to smile. "So, is there a reason you're hacking down all these trees?"

"We're building a fleet, obviously." said the man. "The Great King is working to fulfill the vendetta that his father, Darius, set down for him."

What? Everything... everything about that sentence was warped. "You... wait, you people inherit revenge schemes?" asked Washu.

"Is the Temple of Athena still standing?" asked the man flatly.

"We're... not from around here?" said Mikamo.

"I can tell." said the leader. "Look, I'll make this as simple as possible. Some years ago, the previous Great King, Darius, was ruling justly over Persia. Some of his subjects, however, were rebellious. The Ionian Greek City States had always been left to govern themselves, so long as they gave tribute.

"Then they started a rebellion.

"They killed numerous Persian citizens and raised their banners against us."

"Why?" asked Washu.

"Because they were traitors obviously." said the man. "These damn Greeks never surrender.

"Anyway, they went and called for help from the city-state of Athens and asked them to aid them against us. Athens is a regional power in Greece."

"So, Greece is a country?" asked Washu.

The man gave her a look. "No, it's a region. The Greeks all fight eachother nearly as much as they do everyone else. Make friends with one, and you instantly make enemies of their enemies. And they're constantly switching sides based on vague notions of ideology.

"The Ionian Greeks benefited from a long period of peace under our rule. Then someone incited a revolution. They're worse than those damn Egyptians, I swear."

"Go on," said Washu, wincing as she heard metal on wood.

"Well, anyway, Athens and some other city-states agree and send armies to help them." said the man. "King Darius then has to fight them as well. And during the fighting, the Athenians burned our regional capital of Sardis.

"Of course, it was only a temporary setback; the revolt was crushed. But Great King Darius swore revenge. He had a servant remind him every day 'Sire, remember the Athenians.'

"We launched an attack on them at Marathon during Darius reign; however, it was foiled.

"Now, Great King Xerxes is preparing for the same reason. That's why we're building a fleet of ships."

"How are you going to get dead wood to fly?" asked Washu. She knew she ought to be able to formulate a theory based on what she knew, but... she wasn't feeling up to it.

The man gave her a look, then glanced at Mikamo. "...Is this woman addled?"

"Somewhat. She was in the sun too long," said Mikamo. "Humor her, please."

"They don't fly." said the man. "They float, see we cut the trees into boards which are then prepared and nailed together, so they keep out water."

"So you use the buoyant properties of wood to traverse the seas," said Washu. "But how do you propel them?" Ask questions, even if you don't want to hear the answers.

"Oars, or sails." said the man. "See, you cut the wood into a sort of paddle, and then you push it through the water. If you have enough people doing that at once, you can move quickly. As for sails, you tie them up... somehow to catch the wind, and that pushes you onward."

Washu thought of the prospect. These people...

They were using corpses to move around. Their idea of fast transportation was to hack up the bodies of trees and fit them together into ships. To think that in Jurai, controversy had been raised over trying to speed up tree growth.

But the trees here were dead.

Everything was dead. Washu was on a world of living corpses. "D-details, please."

"I don't know, I'm not a shipbuilder." said the man. "My job is overseeing the cutting of trees for use in the construction of all kinds. I've been doing it for half my life, fifteen years, and when I'm dead in another fifteen, my son will take things over."

So he was fifty, and he expected to die in fifteen years or less. What...

What kind of warped and psychotic god would allow a world like this to exist? How could they bear living here? Or were they even alive? Psychic powers were a mainstay of all living things other than those on earth. Was it possible that these people were just automatons operating on pre-programmed instincts?

A tree fell and smashed to the ground. Washu looked up and saw a man had nearly been crushed while pulling it down with ropes. No, no, they had created organized systems to ensure their safety. That kind of inventiveness requires sentience.

Earthlings were not corpses or automatons. They were just insane.

And who could blame them? Who would not go insane from living in a world where life was hardly above a corpse.

"Sir, we're done here." said a man.

"Excellent work, you men.' said the leader. "Let's do the preparations and set it up with the rest.

"And someone get a fire going, it'll be dark and cold soon."

"What are you using the fires for?" asked Mikamo, picking up the slack.

Washu wasn't up to ask another question.

"Warmth, obviously." said the man.

They... they burned corpses to stay alive? Of course, they did, without psychic power, they could not create warmth themselves. So they killed other living creatures and piled them up and set them on fire! Now the man was looking at Washu with concern.

The stench of burning wood came to Washu's nose, and she screamed. The wail came out of her mouth as she fell to her knees, shuddering in horror. Mikamo kneeled by her.

"Are you certain she should be out here?" asked the man. "There are physicians, you know."

"I think I'd best take her to one," said Mikamo.

"That'll be for the best." said the man.

Washu was led away from that field of stumps and into a place of trees. Or what looked like trees. They appeared like the most twisted and unhealthy of all the plants on normal worlds, but they had no soul. Unaware of those who walked beneath their boughs, unable to feel agony.

Or Washu hoped that was the case.

"Are you alright?" asked Mikamo.

"No, I am not alright," said Washu, standing up.

"I'll call the ship," said Mikamo. "We can head to a normal-"

"No," said Washu. "No, we go on. This is... this is a lot worse than I expected. But that just makes it more important that we understand it.

"If we don't learn about these things...

"Imagine if Jurai ended up like this place? Or Kuramitsu?"

Mikamo nodded. "Well, I wasn't planning on sleeping much lately anyway."

"We go to Greece," said Washu.

Mikamo called them back to the ship, and they teleported away.


	33. Awakening

**Chapter Thirty-Three: Awakening**

Zealot Fenix awoke and found himself lying on a medical bed. Looking up, he saw a monstrous creature surging toward him. It was half his size, perhaps five feet tall, and was roughly humanoid. Yet it had claws and yellow eyes that glowed with the energy of hell itself.

As it surged toward him, Fenix raised a hand and caught it between four fingers. With a movement, he crushed its skull, before throwing the body away. Rising up, he realized he'd broken shackles of steel as he did so.

Then he turned to see more of the creatures summoning spheres of fire.

So, it would appear Aldaris had come too late.

Rolling aside, the flames scorched past him. He surged forward and punched one of the beasts against a wall. In moments it was reduced to a bloody smear as he smashed another in half with one backhand. Turning around, he saw more coming and leaped into the hair, crushing one into the ground. Gripping two more by the throat, he snapped their necks and let them fall limply to the ground.

Looking around, he saw his psi blades resting on the counter.

Moving over to it, the young and inexperienced zealot slipped them on. Raising his hands, he summoned two blades of the purest white. A sense of satisfaction and mirth filled him as he looked at his old friends. Instead, he merely turned to a screen above.

"Hello?" said Doctor Naja above. "Can you hear me?"

Fenix felt a surge of displeasure. She had been warned of the consequences of her actions... how long ago had it been? Shortly after Washu had departed, certainly. Judicator Aldaris had been disappointed, "Dr. Naja, you yet live. I see that what the Conclave predicted has come to pass."

"No, it hasn't," said Naja. "The situation can still be contained. Our security measures are operational. Also, the staff is safe in the containment fields. Some are wounded, but there have been no fatalities.

"We were more than prepared for this eventuality.

"So long as we can restore the power, this can be stopped.

"I need you to find the security systems and restore them."

Fenix walked to the nearby door and pressed a button. It began to slide open slowly. Losing patience, Fenix blew it open with a surge of psychic power. The pieces flew through the air and crushed several demons to death as he marched in. "There is no need. I shall slay all the demons myself. None shall escape my wrath or the wrath of Aiur."

"What are you talking about?" asked Naja. "There are thousands of these things in this facility! More are pouring through every moment! Even if you could kill every creature in this place, more would come through the portal."

"Then I shall close the portal and bring glory to Aiur!" said Fenix, seeing dozens warping into place. Rushing forward, he cleaved through three in a flurry of blows. Plunging his psi blade through the chest of a larger one, its chest exploded.

More came, and these too were crushed downward.

"You're not even on Aiur!" said Naja.

"I was speaking in metaphor," said Fenix, turning a corner and scaling a set of stairs. Finding a locked door, he melted it with one slash and started killing everything within the room. It would be best to eradicate the enemy piecemeal.

Even Fenix might experience some moderate difficulty facing the assembled hosts of hell.

By now, larger demons were coming at him. These were as tall as him, with black skin and faced like skulls. They were savage but without skill. He cut off an arm, then cut off the head. Ducking under a punch, he cut the creature in half.

Then one of them punched him.

It slammed him away to crash into a metal wall. It bent beneath the force of his collision, as panels broke from the walls. The entire room shook as Fenix landed on one knee, and wiped away a drop of blood. Then he glared at the demons who had assembled before him by the hundreds.

They were trembling.

They were wise to do so.

Fenix surged forward, channeling his rage as Aldaris had taught him. When anger controlled you, it consumed you. But when you controlled it, you were unstoppable. He fell on them, slashing, stabbing, and smashing them all around. Some creatures scrambled away in terror, others rushed at him with savagery.

All of them died.

Fight it.

Run from it.

The Khala drew all to it for judgment.

After the last of the corpses had faded into nothingness, Naja spoke again. "...Alright, fine, kill them all. But while you're killing all of these things, maybe you could help us on the way? To make sure nobody gets killed?"

That seemed worth considering. Even battle could become old if there was no greater context for it. "What would you ask of me?"

"The Juraian fleet is en route with the Emperor," said Naja. "Once he gets here, he'll be able to handle this. Just reactivate the defense system, and the problem will be contained.

"Then you can go back to brutally slaughtering demons."

"It shall be done!" said Fenix,

Then he turned and strode toward a set of massive, double doors before him. As he did, he examined his surroundings. This was the room where Fenix and his brethren had dined before the accident. They'd been assigned as the honor guard of Aldaris, with Fenix having been added in at the last minute.

Fenix had not fit in well with them. He was half of the worker caste in blood, and so he had been met with some scorn. But Aldaris had spoken fairly to all.

A door opened to one side. "Just follow the corridors along this way," said Naja. "It should lead around the bulk of the-"

Fenix plunged his hands into the steel. Straining against it, he let out a psionic roar, before ripping open the sealed the doors. As he did, sparks flew, and Fenix saw, coursing into another great hall, even more demons than before. There must have been at least a thousand.

Fortunately, they were physical manifestations of sin. And so it was in their nature to be destroyed. Even if he was outnumbered massively, Fenix was a servant of the light and so shielded. His death would be but the beginning of greater life, and his deeds would be known to all within the Khala.

All that remained to him was to ensure that those deeds were worthy.

"...Nice knowing you," said Naja after a moment.

Fenix did not reply. As his enemies rushed at him and he began to hack and slash, he moved in a blur. His blades cleaved through them constantly. Oceans of blood spilled out onto the floor. It reached up to his ankles and soaked him. Demonic energy filled the air as one enemy after another was exterminated.

Yet the darkness closed around him, tearing at him.

Small scratches began to affect his body, wounding him more and more. For though his blades ended one enemy after another, there were always more. Knowing that he might well die here, Fenix continued to hack down the enemy. And as he did, he recited the creed by which he lived:

"I fear no enemy," said Felix, tearing down a whole line of the black beasts his size. "For the Khala is our strength." Charging forward, he unleashed his powers to consume a vast line of the lesser ones. He scattered them away from him. Yet still more of them came, assembling in greater and greater numbers.

Yet their fear outweighed their hatred. Alone they were paralyzed. Instead, they were gathering in greater and greater numbers all around him. Fenix stood as a single pillar of order, and where his light touched, the demons dared not tread. Yet in the darkness, they were gathering in ever greater numbers.

Alone they could not triumph.

But like a great mass of hatred and spoiled instinct, they hoped to wash over and destroy him. When they struck, he could not face them.

"I fear not death," said Felix. "For our strength is eternal!"

The demons came in great waves from all directions. Their light blocked out all light save his own and their eyes of hatred. On they came toward Fenix, who stood where he was, channeling his power for one final strike. Clustered as they were, he could kill many of them, but not enough.

Fenix would surely die.

Yet if he would die, then it would be giving up all that he was for good. And so he finished his creed. "My life for Aiur."

The last part of the creed was what was remembered. It was quoted by every zealot. And yet it was merely the end. And the end's meaning was determined by what came before. And Fenix would see to it that his end was glorious.

Light emanated from him, light greater than any he had yet faced. Before it, the demons could not stand. All their amassed numbers were for naught as light burst forward. It consumed all and pressing soon. Soon all the world was made white as their tortured souls screamed in final agony. Then they were purified, sent back diminished.

Thousands dead for a few nicks. So he would live. Then he would live as gloriously as he would die.

"And so I have brought swift death to the enemies of Aiur," said Fenix. "Direct me to the security station."

"...Hold, please," said Naja.

Fenix was not complaining. Sitting down, he began to meditate. How was it that these demons had been so easily beaten? He had expected more from so primal an evil. Yet perhaps there was a lesson there. The negative plane was where the souls of the wicked descended after death. The good and selfless were made more themselves in the service of others. But the evil spent their selves on lusts and selfish desires.

Becoming one with the good was to gain your true identity. While falling into wickedness was eternal separation. And so the negative plane was a realm of hatred, wrangling with one another, unable to create anything. Nameless ghosts wrangled with one another as much as the universe beyond. They were united only by hatred and envy for the living. Their pride demanded they tear down those greater than them, and they were all equal in their misery.

Perhaps that was why the Breathe of Creation had so much power behind it. Hate could drive you. If channeled, it could be a source of great good. But, with the Dark Templar and others like them, it drove them to commit atrocities for hate's sake alone.

And so these demons had come about.

They were soulless and yet had a will behind them. Their bodies were a twisted mockery of life. They possessed cruelty without kindness. Like animals, yet fallen beyond comprehension. Against the wicked, they might achieve great feats, but against the righteous?

They were nothing.

"Okay, I've just brought up the schematics for that part of the installation," said Naja. "...Follow the green lights."

Fenix saw the green light and followed them. His cuts hurt a bit, but he felt more at ease now. There was nothing like a bit of philosophy after destroying the legions of evil. You could also be as violent and brutal as you want with a clear conscience. "Where is Judicator Aldaris?"

"He is..." Naja paused. "When you were put in the medical bay, he went to meet with Lady Seto. He wanted to convince Jurai to cut my funding. That's when it happened.

"We've had no contact with them for hours."

"As was predicted," noted Fenix. "No matter.

"The portal shall be closed before it may spread further." The light would guide him.

At last, Fenix came to a door with green lights above it. Pressing the button, he saw a console within. A cup of coffee had been spilled across the rug as someone left in a hurry. So Fenix made his way, ducking under the door frame as he did. He wished they made these rooms for protoss.

There was also a series of windows in the security station. However, they were shut by panels.

"Ah, here is the security station," said Fenix, typing as he remembered the technician had taught him. "What occurred here to cause this kind of problem?"

"It was..." Naja shifted. "Everything was under control. Then a group of Tal'Darim launched an attack on the station. They were stopped and captured, but it must have been a distraction. Someone rerouted the energies from our generators to pierce the veil between worlds.

"It shouldn't have been possible!

"The kind of sophisticated approached necessary for such a thing. It would require decades of research. And the Tal'Darim doesn't have any technology on that level."

"So you believe," noted Fenix. He remembered that the Tal'Darim had thrashed the Juraians quite spectacularly once. This egotistical approach seemed ill-founded. "Jurai has believed many things. Most of them wrong." Checking things, he pressed a button and smiled. "Doctor, the security system is back online."

"Thank you," said Naja, sounding relieved he had not smashed it. The lights then went on. "Alright, the shields are going back now. The power is being redirected, and our communication systems are back on. If you look out the window, you'll be able to see the main city."

Fenix did see the main city. As the panels slid away, he as the city of the Tal'Darim writhed in smoke. Flaming cars could be seen, and demons were prowling the streets. Juraian warriors were fighting them at every corner. Their swords and staves glowed with the power of Tsunami.

The Juraians were fighting very well, each one slaying dozens. But more demons were surging out to face them. They had locked the place down, but some of them might die in this "...Adun, protect them."

"Tsunami above!" said Naja.

What was she upset about. It must have been something serious. "What is it?"

"The... the demons have pierced the inner sanctum," said Naja. "They've gained access to the central generator. Even now, they are trying to turn it into another portal.

"But... if they turn that into a portal, it'll be enough for entire legions to emerge from in a mere moment.

"We can't wait for the Emperor."

Fenix let out a psionic sigh. "Jurai was warned, Doctor.

"The Conclave will not be pleased."

Fenix remembered a saying among the zealots that you didn't qualify as one of them until the first time you saw battle. If so, this was proving to be an eventful first day on the job.

* * *

 **Author's Note:**

So, on a separate note, I had planned to continue Washu and Mikamo's adventures on earth. However, I realized that the ideas I had didn't really fit with my portrayal of Earth as a death world. And Washu observing events would largely be without interacting since Washu is specifically trying not to interfere.

Thus we cut over to something actually relevant.

Fenix being awesome.


	34. Showdown on Bel'Shir

**Chapter Thirty-Four: Showdown on Bel'Shir**

Princess Seto had been busy.

Very busy, in fact.

Forty-eight hours ago, everything had been fine. She'd been wine and dining with a visitor from Aiur, Judicator Aldaris. Aldaris had been expressing concerns about Jurai's recent research. He'd also advocating the return of Bel' Shir in exchange for a settlement. The other worlds Jurai had taken might be ceded to Jurai in a settlement. But none of them had the Breath of Cration.

Seto saw no reason Jurai should give up its hard-won territories. Especially since they had yet to suffer any defeats. And so these requests had been politely but firmly refused.

Yes, Jurai was not at the Khalai's level yet, but they were more than prepared for this. The Tal' Darim were a backward race of pirates and raiders, after all. They had no real hope of victory, only prolonging the inevitable.

And then the attack had happened. Now there were Tal' Darim insurgents attacking the facility, and demons streaming out. So far, the demons had caused only a few injuries. Their attacks were weak and devoid of true skills. No one had even died.

And yet they were causing immense chaos, and they were serving as a distraction.

And Judicator Aldaris was meditating.

"Judicator Aldaris, why are you meditating?" asked Seto, somewhat annoyed. If he had been saying he'd told her so it would have been better.

"I assure you, Princess Seto, I am fully aware of events as they stand," said Aldaris. "These creatures are shallow wilt before the Khala's light. Like to unleash them took significant forethought and skill.

"The one responsible for this is using this as a distraction.

"I recommend you alert your fleets. Tell them to stand by for war and initiate scans of the surrounding space."

"We're always scanning the surrounding space, Judicator. We are at war," said Seto.

"Then broaden the range. Until this crisis is averted, you must exert all power," said the Judicator. "I believe the Tal' Darim will launch an invasion soon."

"And who are you to tell us how to defend our own territory?" asked Seto.

"It was a suggestion motivated out of goodwill. You may do with it as you will," said Aldaris.

Seto looked to her staff, who even now were giving orders. "...Send word to the sentries. Tell them to double up scans until the present crisis is over."

"We're following the protoss' orders?" asked one.

"We're taking a suggestion I judge to be worth following. Do it," said Seto. "And alert our fleets in the area, tell them to standby for orders. I want them able to warp to us on a moment's notice."

"Yes ma'am," said the woman.

* * *

Fenix made his way through the facility quickly. As he did, he found signs of smashed equipment the demons had obliterated. It seemed they could obliterate inanimate objects quite effectively. Still, as he walked, he considered his side here.

Why exactly was he helping Naja?

Yes, the demons were a threat. But when he looked out the window, they largely seemed defeated. It was now the Tal' Darim he'd be fighting.

Rounding a corner, he found the hall blocked by a red energy field. And several more down the hall. Obviously, someone had been working to stop him. "Naja, there are multiple energy shields in my path. I cannot break through them."

"I see," said Naja. "They must have set them up to slow you down. But...

"That means they've been observing events somehow. How? Only I have access to the camera.

"Nevermind.

"Can you get to the ventilation shaft on your left?"

"Yes, I can," said Fenix, looking left and seeing a grate. A very small grate.

"Good," said Naja as Fenix looked to the wall the shield was on. "It should lead through the whole installation. It'll get you past the main generators-"

Fenix brought around a fist and smashed a huge chunk off the wall. With another blow, he broke more off, and with a third, he obliterated the corner. From there, he slipped on past.

"...Or you could do that," said Naja.

"Breaking the wall seems faster than moving through it," said Fenix.

Even as he did, however, numerous Tal' Darim zealots rushed around the corner toward him. Fenix took a stance and summoned his blades as they came.

"Stop them! For Amon!" cried the warriors.

"Hold where you are, warrior," said Fenix, parrying their thrusts quite easily. "I am an official representative of the Conclave. Strike me and you will be making a direct act of war on the Khalai." Turning his blades, he slashed both their psi blades at the base, breaking them.

"...If we kill him, no one will know," said some of the others behind.

"My presence in this facility is known to multiple witnesses who will report your deed," said Fenix. "Does your master have time to kill all of them?"

"You will not pass us," they replied, raising their fists.

"I am here to meet your leader, not kill him," said Fenix. "The Khalai are no pawns of the Juraians. Take me to him at once."

They halted and looked at one another. "...As you wish."

"What are you doing!" said Naja.

"I am bound by honor to the will of the Conclave," said Fenix with a shrug. "I cannot in good conscience strike down one we are not at war with,"

Naja said nothing else as they walked through the halls. Fenix suspected she was making last-second adjustments to her plans. The Tal' Darim around Fenix, on the other hand, all stayed out of reach. It was the fact that they were trying to look like they were guarding a prisoner that made it comical, however.

Soon they came to a great set of heavy metal doors. Standing there was a Tal' Darim with his hands behind his back. He wore ornate, black armor, and in front of him was a machine gradually melting through the door. He looked back. "You, what is the meaning of this?"

"This is the... intruder, Malrath," said a guard. "He wishes to speak with you."

"What is there to speak of?" asked Malrath.

"More than you can conceive of," said Fenix. "I am Zealot Fenix of the Judicator Elite Guard, and I am here to demand you retreat from this realm immediately."

"And why should we do such a thing?" asked Malrath. "The Juraians have occupied our domain and committed heresy against Lord Amon. I am here by his will to take from them their vaunted energy source.

"One more stolen relic."

"What relic?" asked Fenix.

"A stone of immense power," said Malrath. "The Juraians use it to maintain their defenses across this entire world. Once removed, their weapon systems will be rendered useless.

"Why do you take their side?"

"I am on no one's side save the Conclave," said Fenix. "My goal in being here is simply to ensure the safety of non-combatants. The demons you have summoned may cause fatalities and attacked me.

"When I began fighting you, I was unaware of your machinations."

Malrath shifted. "...If I guarantee the safety of all non-combatants, will you let me take the stone."

"Are you in a position to make such a promise?" asked Fenix.

"I can organize the demons we summon to focus entirely on military targets," said Malrath. "We are literally giving them form out of will, so that is possible. It was never my intention to wipe out my own civilians, in any case. Most of them are my own people.

"Do we have an agreement?"

"Opposing you in the field of battle would be in violation of the Conclave's neutrality," said Fenix. "Without a good cause to intervene and without a direct threat to my person, I am bound to do nothing."

Malrath blinked. "...Excellent, I'm glad this worked out." Then he turned to the gate and raised a hand. The weakened gate cracked, and exploded inward. Beyond they saw the room where the jewel was stored. It stood upon a great generator, pouring vast amounts of power into it.

And in front of it stood Azaka, holding his staff in two hands and brimming with energy. "You shall not pass."

"Azaka, a personal guard of Emperor Nesshin," said Malrath, leading his forces forward.

"The same," said Azaka. "Do any of you possess the will to face me in combat?"

"I will enjoy telling my son stories of how I killed you in single combat," said Malrath. "They will, of course, be lies.

"Get him."

Dozens of Tal' Darim rushed toward Azaka and attacked him. Fenix expected him to be cut to ribbons in seconds, but he was proven wrong. As Malrath made his way toward the generator, Azaka ducked and weaved, before striking his enemies away.

"He is quite formidable, is he not?" mused Fenix.

"He'd be even more formidable if you would help him!" snapped Naja.

"I have little sympathy for one who has conjured up such horrors for the sake of knowledge," said Fenix. "And in any case, I am bound to do nothing.

"If I were you, I would concern yourself with the fleet heading this way."

"Fleet?" asked Naja.

"Malrath obviously planned this strategy long in advance," said Fenix. "If I were to initiate a plan that might cripple your defenses, I would also have a fleet standing by. To take advantage of the inevitable shutdown.

"His goal is to prevent you from profaning the Breath of Creation. For that purpose, he must liberate this world."

Naja went silent. "...I need to make a phone call."

Malrath reached the shield surrounded the gem, and summoned a shield of power around one hand. Plunging forward, he grasped the gem and drew it out. He emanated pain as the gem burned his hand but smiled and held his grip.

"We have the gem. Leave him," said Malrath, launching himself to stand beside Fenix.

The Tal' Darim obeyed, and they ran to join him. As they did, Fenix detached a blue gem from his gauntlet and rolled it at Malraths feet. With Azaka coming at him, he had no time to see it.

"No!" cried Azaka, sending a wave of power. "I will not allow you to take the gem!"

"You are in a position to allow nothing," said Malrath. "Warp us away, quickly." And he was gone.

Fenix opened communicators mentally. "Judicator, track my homing beacon now. It should show you the location of Malraths vessel and where they are heading."

"What?" said Azaka. "Why did you not stop them in the first place?"

"This was an internal matter," said Fenix. "And the Conclave was not directly involved beyond saving civilians. However, there is no reason we cannot track them down.

"Now, let us find the exit."

* * *

Judicator Aldaris had disappeared at some point. Nobody could say exactly when he'd left, but Seto didn't have time to find out. As she was giving orders, she finally got an emergency call from the facility. Naja appeared, looking frantic.

"Lady Seto, I need to talk to you now!"

"What is it, Naja?" asked Seto.

"The defense systems power source is about to go down, make appropriate measures," said Naja. "The gem has been stolen!"

"Very well, I'll scramble all troops," said Seto. "We were nearly done here anyway."

"Have you scanned for any fleets approaching us?" asked Naja.

"Yes, we have," said Seto. "However, we are not detecting anything, no matter how many scans we do. This appears to be a single raid. Still, Emperor Nesshin is only minutes away. The Tal' Darim fleets haven't even made any move to intercept him.

"I expect this is part of a power struggle. Third Ascendant working against Second Ascendant."

"We've already tracked down the fleet, thanks to a homing beacon one of Aldaris' men put on them. They should be intercepted in orbit."

"What about in the orbit of the planet? Have you scanned there?" asked Naja.

"We ought to have known, although, the Tal' Darim possess cloaking technology," said Seto. "If they used the proper application of Arbiters..." She froze and turned to her ensigns. "Send word to the Emperor, tell him to come out of warp space now! He's walking into a trap!"

"But Princess-" began one.

"Do it now!"

* * *

Emperor Nesshin had no intention of walking into a trap twice.

He'd had his fleets trained extensively. He'd one everything he could to avoid the humiliation they'd suffered before. And it had paid off. He'd won a dozen smaller battles against the Tal'Darim and conquered many worlds. Bel' Shir was only the first. Yet Ma'lash, the Tal' Darim's leader, had used hit and run tactics until now.

He'd preferred to drag the conflict out. He'd both their time with costly occupations. That and raids upon merchant's vessels, trying to provoke Nesshin to rash action. But Nesshin was not foolish enough to try a direct assault on Slayn.

It had been a frustrating stalemate.

Now, at last, Ma'lash was launching a counterattack. Nesshin had a feeling that he was walking into a far larger engagement than expected. And so he had brought the entire Jurai Fleet with him.

If this turned out to be another false alarm, he would strike directly at Slayn next.

Kamidake moved up to him. "Emperor Nesshin, Lady Seto requests we come out of warp space immediately. She believes there is a trap waiting for us at our current landing point."

"Do it now, Kamidake," said Nesshin.

No sense in going in half-cocked.

The ships halted, coming out of phase and saw Bel' Shir before them. Nesshin clasped his hands and saw only a small fleet of Tal'Darim ships. Hardly enough for a raid and they were being pursued by multiple vessels.

Nesshin didn't like it. "There is a fleet waiting here. I can sense it."

He raised Sword Tenchi and focused his power through it. Sending it outward, he sensed tiny disturbances that were familiar. The sort he'd seen many times before, but on a much larger scale. "I see them now.

"I will show this fleet for what it is with the power of Tsunami. Assemble the fleet for war and prepare to assault them as soon as they are revealed."

Then he set to work.

"It was a clever tactic,' said Kamidake. "Make the appearance of a small strike force to create a disturbance below, then lure us in. If it had worked, they could have made an ambush for us.

"Still, against the might of the Jurai Fleet, even the whole Death Fleet could not stand against us in fair combat. All weapons are ready."

Nesshin unleashed the pulse. The Juraian Fleet surged forward, firing at the revealed ships. Yet the ships, in turn, seemed to have been waiting, and they rushed forward with the same fury. Multiple vessels were scorched by assaults from both sides, and the battle had only begun. A cheer resounded through the room as the Tal'Darim lost two carriers. Nesshin had yet to even commit his Second and First Generation ships.

And yet more were being revealed with every moment. As the pulse continued, the sky was filled with Tal'Darim vessels. They seemed to outnumber the stars. Their red lights were like images of hell upon the sky.

Yet Nesshin was not afraid. The might of Jurai was fully assembled. Never before had such a fleet been assembled, nor against such force. And coming to meet it was the whole of the Tal'Darim Death Fleet.

"...It appears that belief is going to be tested, Kamidake," said Nesshin, smiling "to battle! For Tsunami and Jurai!"

"FOR TSUNAMI AND JURAI!" cried the fleet.

The Tal'Darim rushed forward with equal might. There would be no protoss fleet to end the conflict this time. Nesshin was now certain that Ma'lash himself was present. The battle would continue until one of them was dead.

Perfect.

* * *

 **Author's Note:**

I have a confession to make. The entire Fenix arc was basically setup to get Nesshin into this critical battle. It was sufficiently important that I had to show it on screen. However, at the same time, I didn't have any main characters working directly under Nesshin.

I'm trying to keep a fast pace with all of this, to be honest. I'm certain that Starcraft players want to see the heroes of Starcraft. And the Tenchi Muyo fans will want to see some characters beyond Washu. Thus why I had the backstory to this arc revealed in retrospect.

Also, some aspects of the timeline will change to make this merging work. I've already fast-tracked the Juraian Timeline by literally millions of years, possibly more. I did this because... how much has happened in the last ten years?

Right, now if that much happens in ten years, multiply that by a thousand?

Anyway, hopefully, the UED will show up soon.


	35. Not So First Contact

**Chapter Thirty-Five: Not So First Contact**

Doran Routhe was a man of vision.

As he sat within the ship, watching the starry expanse. Doran wondered what enemies were beyond human vision. He turned his gaze down to Earth, tortured, overpopulated Earth.

The UFN had shattered, Britannia had been swept away. The UPL and the Asian Prosperity Sphere had risen to take their place. A lot of money that had been wasted on endless wars was now being spent on medical technology and the space race. Bits of green were beginning to return to certain elements of the world that had been ripped apart.

Yet it was not enough.

"Captain Routhe," said Lieutenant Alas Dugalle, turning in the buck.

Routhe looked up to an ensign. "Yes, what is it?"

"The object is nearing us. It's on a collision course with Earth," said Dugalle.

"How large?" asked Doran, who had read the reports but wanted to be sure.

"Not large," said Dugalle. "It isn't going to end all life if it crashes, but look at these statistics."

Information and a 3D model of the vessel appeared before them. It was a ship, or so Doran assumed and was forged of dark crystal. There was a huge red gem on top of it, and it was moving at an immense rate. Doran read the energy readings and then noticed the vessel coming in beyond it.

"This is..." Doran raised a hand. "Plot a course to intercept, but keep your distance. Don't send any messages without my word."

"Are you certain?" asked the man. "This ship has no resemblance to the Juraian vessels we observed?"

"What is our standard policy toward Juraians, Dugalle?" asked Doran flatly.

Dugalle snapped to attention. "They must never know we know of them."

"Precisely," said Doran. "That was laid out by the high command years ago when we first became aware of them among us. Because of that, the precedent is clear. Aliens are to think us blissfully unaware of them.

"Take us along these coordinates. It should give us the chance to spot them from afar, but we'll have deniability."

And so they waited. The vessel, a top of the line shuttle called the Demonic Visionary, moved swiftly. The advances in military tech were now focused on space. If those Japanese animals had had their way, the Damocles would have been destroyed. Fortunately, some of the French had been sensible enough to take schematics. They'd been instrumental in building the UPL space program.

"We're in position," said Dugalle, looking up.

"Good," said Doran. "Power down our non-essential equipment to minimum levels. If they detect us, depending on their attitude, they may blow us out of the sky."

The waiting began anew. Their sensors soon picked up the coming energy as their cameras trailed. Then they saw the objects, like two angels falling from heaven like lightning. One was a blur of red, the other a blue of black.

"Dugalle, report," said Doran.

"There appear to be two ships. Heat signatures are being traded between them," said Dugalle. "Captain Routhe, nothing like this has ever happened before. We're actually looking at a battle between starships!"

"Yes," said Doran, clasping his hands together. "And these are certainly not like those that came before." He remembered the research, the finding of the first ship within the lake, and the gateway to the Thought Elevator. And e smiled. "...The Lady in the Lake gave King Arthur the Sword Excalibur in the Dark Ages. What new sword may mankind draw forth by their own hand from the oceans of stars."

The ships dodged and weaved. Then one hit the other and was hit in turn. Together, they fell from heaven like lightning.

"What's their trajectory?" asked Doran.

Dugalle flinched.

"What is it?" asked Doran.

"The ship isn't in UPL territory, sir," said Duran. "It's heading toward the mountains in Japan, near Okayama and the Masaki Household. It's out of our jurisdiction."

What luck.

It just had to land in the west they wouldn't have had a problem. But now it was in the jurisdiction of those idiots in the Japanese government. "One more Princess Kaguya, then.

"No matter. Those savages will not waste the elixir of life a second time. Contact our Tactical Empath in the region. Tell him to investigate at once.

"Who is it, again?"

Dugalle checked it. "It's Mark, sir.

"Willliam Mark."

Ah, yes, the greatest the program had ever produced. Doran smiled. "Perfect."

* * *

The bus stop near the Masaki Shrine led directly to a huge staircase. It was one that was difficult to climb, even for Mark. Fortunately, the collision had not yet happened, which meant that he had time yet.

Donning his glasses, Mark remembered his persona as Tenchi Masaki's highschool compatriot. Raising his bag, he wished he had been able to bring a gun. But he hadn't been allowed to keep them with the laws in Japan.

The newly established government was obsessively pacifist.

Mark found the policy ironic, but then they had tried to sell out the entire world to ensure their own freedom. So perhaps cowardice was a natural part of their race. Yet that was not part of his persona.

And so he began to scale the ground next to the path. As he did, he mentally remembered his goal. "It should be landing here in a few minutes. Barring any unforeseen events, it'll come down, higher up the mountain.

"Best not to take the path. Tenchi Masaki will be coming down that way in a few minutes. He is nothing if not punctual for school. There are two possible reactions he will have if he lands. Either he will investigate, or he will remain passive.

"In either event, I must be the first to survey the crash site. And I must due so without being seen."

Sure enough, down came the meteors. It crashed, and the earth shook, and Mark had to adjust his posture to keep his pose. Moving toward it as quickly as he could, he kept his mind attuned to his surroundings. He could sense Masaki coming through the trees; he'd become attuned to his presence.

Moving up, he found a river. Something had crashed there, shattered crystals of huge size lying about. In the midst of it lay a woman. She might have been considered beautiful, but her ears were pointed and inhuman. She was also wholly unharmed despite the speed of the crash. That meant that she had notable durability. Her hair was cyan, and she was lying in the shallows of a river.

Her breath stunk of alcohol.

Apparently, alcohol had been invented beyond Earth. Or, perhaps, stolen from Earth. It was not impossible that the Juraians had stolen it, though this woman wasn't a Juraian. Mark made a mental note that she was physically very attractive. His persona would likely be sexually attracted to her. And he was hallowed enough to ignore her heritage, given her low-cut white skirt with orange sleeves.

Mark considered his options as he chipped off a piece of the crystal and slipped it into a plastic bag. Then he looked to the woman. "I could take her into custody. However, we may not possess sufficient technology to control her. There are too many unknown elements.

"...Perhaps I should play the role of good samaritan."

Tenchi was nearing now. Assuming his persona, Mark adjusted his posture to be less confident. He kneeled down by the woman in obvious insecurity. "Mark, Mark, is that you?" asked a voice. "What are you doing here?"

Mark glanced up to see Tenchi Masaki. A complete void of characterization is what Mark would have called him were he fictional. In practice, Tenchi was attractive, in a very ordinary way, humble, kind-hearted, etc, etc.

Easily manipulated and the antithesis of what mankind ought to be. "Oh, Tenchi," said Mark, voice adopting a nasal tone that some would call nerdy. "Sorry about coming up here, I just... well, remember how you misplaced one of your books a while back? It must have gotten mixed up with mine, so I came to return it.

"Then I saw this meteorite and came to investigate." He drew out the book that was his alibi. He'd stolen it months ago.

"Oh, well, thanks, I guess," said Tenchi, moving toward the girl and turning his attention from Mark. "This girl, who is she?"

"I don't know," said Mark, trying to read him. "I just um... found her here.

"She's uh... really pretty, isn't she?" He felt ill saying as much, of course, the idea of sleeping with an alien...

He wanted to throw up at the prospect.

"I guess," said Tenchi, kneeling by her. "There's a lot of alcohol in her breath. I think she needs water." Cupping water from the river, he poured it into her mouth. Her eyes opened, and she gazed on Tenchi as Mark distanced himself, putting on obvious fear.

"Oh, you're awake," said Tenchi. "Do you think you're hurt at all."

Instantly, with speed far faster than Mark could follow. She grabbed Tenchi by the shoulders and adopted a false persona of her own. "Ah, I'm so scared!"

"What?" said Tenchi.

"I am Ryoko, and I'm being chased by a Space Pirate," said the woman.

"Space Pirate, what are you talking about?" asked Tenchi.

Mark had the feeling he was being forgotten. Good. Glancing, he saw something descending. It was a suit of heavy, blue armor that landed on the shore. It had a very large weapon. Mark at once wondered if there was some way he could get ahold on that technology, it could be valuable to the UPL.

"There he is!" said Ryoko. "That's the Space Pirate!"

Did Masaki actually believe this absurd concept? If the women was able to survive a crash like that, she could fend for herself. Then again, he lacked context.

"Hang on, what are you talking about?" asked Tenchi.

The machines cannon began to glow blue.

"Oh no," said Ryoko.

"I think I'm starting to get it," said Tenchi.

Then they exited, pursued by a giant mecha which fired energy blasts at them. Mark was only too pleased with this. In a best-case scenario, the wretched xenos would all kill eachother. At the very least, he could examine the ships and take samples.

Opening his bag, he took several more pictures of the crash light site. When he was finished, he put the camera away and decided to head after the next meteorite. Closing his eyes, he sent out his consciousness to sense for energy.

He found one.

Following it, he soon came to a large lake. At the center of that lake was an island with a tree growing out of it. Beyond the lake, he saw the crushed wreckage of the ship. Yet somehow, it didn't seem to have caused much devastation. Perhaps some advanced form of shock absorbers?

If a human ship crashlanded in this area, it would be totaled, and the trees would be devastated. Yet he vessel was half-submerged in the water and looked to be falling to pieces. Moving forward, Mark approached the broken wreck and noticed an area where it had broken open. Stepping in, he found it was far larger on the inside.

As he stepped into it, he found that he could walk on the angled ship like a normal hall. It was artificial gravity of some kind. He could see water leaking in through the far part of the ship, but instead of filling up the bottom, it fell onto the flow. Thus there was a flow of water filling up the inside of the vessel.

Moving throughout the ship, he took multiple pictures of the inside. It struck him that the design of this vessel was very inefficient. There were numerous inefficiencies in the design. Wasted material and overengineered decoration. Was this some sort of Royal transport or military vessel?

Then he noticed the cube as he was examining the bridge.

It was a cube that several agents had observed Juraians using in action. It had been used to achieve several different functions, and it was made from a pink material. The consensus was that it was a kind of storage device.

Reaching out, Mark took the device. Quickly taking it, he suddenly felt a lurch and felt a surge of power. Looking out the cockpit, he saw the ship was falling into the lake. Quickly he ran upward with his finding, sprinting up and making it to the breach. Pulling himself out, he landed just as the entire thing descended into the water.

It was a Juraian tree, and some mischief had been made by it. The race of hedonists had trees that looked after their interests. Mark dearly wished to burn the cursed thing but decided against it. Instead, he took his findings and moved off.

As the day wore on, and Mark reached the bus stop, he sensed that nobody had died.

A pity. Though understandable, given Masaki's training.

It meant Mark was going to have to go up there. Quickly, he stashed his findings beneath a log, and then he moved on up. Climbing up the stairs this time, he eventually came to the Masaki Household. It was a two-story, many roomed house built on a pier next to a much larger lake. This region had a lot of rivers and forests.

Oddly enough, however, Mark also sensed the alien women. Her presence was actually something of a standout. She seemed to radiate much of the life energy that most people had only a very little of. Reaching the door, Mark reluctantly assumed his persona and knocked.

Tenchi's Father, Nobuyuki, the race traitor, opened the door and smiled. "Hmm, oh, hello there, Mark? Is this something about the school paper?"

"No!" said Mark in the usual nasal voice. "I heard explosions and saw Tenchi and that girl we rescued getting chased by some kind of giant robot!"

"Oh right, I remember Tenchi mentioned running into you earlier," said Noboyuki. He was well-documented as not letting remarkable events affect him. "I'm glad to see you're okay.

"You don't have to worry, Ryoko is safe here with us. You can go home if you like."

"I'd rather not!" said Mark, trying to look afraid but trying to look brave. "What happened with the robot?"

"Well, it turns out that she was being chased by a Space Pirate," said Nobuyuki. "But we haven't seen any sign of him yet, so he moved on."

"Hang on, you can't expect me to go home while you guys are fighting some sort of alien!" said Mark, trembling intentionally. "Let me help!"

"Well, as a matter of fact, there is something you could help Tenchi with," mused Nobuyuki.

That was the beginning of a lengthy period of useless preparations.

Nobuyuki used the arrival of an alien as grounds to do renovations. Mostly reinforcing the walls of his house. Mark ended up getting conscripted alongside Tenchi. Nobuyuki was an accomplished architect, so the changes were proper.

Even so, Mark did not enjoy this.

So much of his persona was based around being a feeble nerd beneath notice. As such, he was forced to do his job well enough to not get shooed off, but not well enough to break the masquerade. Fortunately, everyone around him were idiots.

The alien woman was a terrible actor. Several times she seemed to almost forget what she was doing and who was pursuing her. Tenchi didn't buy into it but was far too weak-willed to actually stand for what he was saying.

"These people are idiots," mused Mark.

"This may work against typhoons but not against Space Pirates!" said Tenchi as he finished the last bit of reinforcement. The sun was sinking below the horizon by now.

"Hang on a second, Typhon was powerful. Powerful enough to sent the entire Olypian Pantheon fleeing in terror," said Mark. "Zeus himself only barely scraped out a victory."

"Sounds scary," said the alien women, missing both acting beats and the context.

"Mark, I meant Typhoons, as in the huge storms," said Tenchi.

"Oh, right, I thought you meant mythology," said Mark.

"Geek," muttered Ryoko under her breath.

"So how did you end up sheltering Ryoko anyway?" asked Mark

"She told Dad a sob story about how she's trapped, far from home and being pursued by an evil space pirate," said Tenchi. "Personally, I don't buy into it."

"Both of you quit yapping, remember," said Nobuyuki. "Always put off till tomorrow what you can do today. Wait, that didn't come out right."

"Oh, you're all so very good to treat a stranger with such kindness," said Ryoko. "But I don't want to be any trouble."

"You don't need to worry, young lady. I'll stay up all night to protect you," said Nobuyuki.

Wait a minute; if all these idiots got killed Mark might be next on the hitlist. He wouldn't be able to complete his mission if he died. Best to bring in Yosho, then. But how to do it? "Hang on a second, what makes you think we can take this guy anyway? I mean, I know Tenchi knows martial arts, but I don't, and neither do you."

"Well, wait a minute, why don't we go talk to Grandpa! He's a master at this kind of thing!" said Tenchi.

"Really?" said Ryoko.

"Yes, he's the best swordsman I know," said Tenchi.

"Good idea, Tenchi!" said Mark, standing and deciding he had to do something to look less competent. "Come on, everyone, we need to get to higher ground!" Then he deliberately tripped over his own feet and landed hard. His glasses fell from his head, and he pretended to snatch after them. "Ah! I lost my glasses! Tenchi, Ryoko, do you see them!"

"He's kind of a klutz, isn't he?" asked Ryoko.

"Like you wouldn't believe," said Tenchi.

Mark considered this a success, especially since Nobuyuki decided not to come.

Yosho, or as he went by now, Katsuhito, dwelled in a shrine near the very top of the mountain. He was waiting at the top, practicing with a wooden blade. He looked to them as they came and if he was surprised he didn't show it. "Hmm, quite a crowd you've brought up here today, Tenchi. To what do I owe the pleasure?"

Tenchi explained everything as if it had been his idea in the first place. Which he thought it was.

The priest listened. "So, let me see if I understand this? This young lady crashlanded down here from outer space."

"Yes," said Tenchi.

"And now a Space Pirate is pursuing her with plans to kidnap or enslave her?" said Katsuhito.

"Yes," said Tenchi. "That's as far as we've heard it.

"And you want me to defeat said giant robot with nothing more than a bokken," mused Katsuhito.

"Um, well, that about sums it up," mused Tenchi.

Katsuhito sighed. "Oh, very well. I suppose it might make for decent practice."

What was wrong with all these people? How had they not seen the obvious so far? Before Mark could express this in any way, the 'space pirate' came out of nowhere, landing before them.

"Look out! It's the Space Pirate!" cried Ryoko.

Mark quickly took a step to the left as the scattered. Now it was only Katsuhito and the machine, facing one another down. A man with a stick against a futuristic war machine. On first glance, of course, with context, one knew this wasn't nearly so one-sided.

"...What a nuisance," said Katsuhito.

Then he struck.

Mark was hardly able to follow the blow, but he was able to observe the technique in motion. Perhaps that could be useful for his own efforts. The blow struck the machine. Katsuhito passed, the machine fell forward, falling to pieces around them. Smoke rose around them.

"Wow!" said Ryoko in amazement that was not entirely feigned.

Mark took this to mean that Katsuhito's movement was considered impressive. Valuable insight if he learned more. Still, if the ability Katsuhito had used could be duplicated, even in a limited fashion...

It could be valuable.

Still, the pilot was still alive. She rose up from the wreckage and drew a pistol. She looked fully human and wore a blue jumpsuit with a white skirt. Her hair was long and blue, as were her eyes, and she pointed the gun at Ryoko.

"Surrender yourself at once, Space Pirate Ryoko! Do so, and I can promise you a fair trial!" said the woman.

"...Hang on, what?" said Tenchi. "I thought she was the space pirate."

"She is!" said Ryoko, voice more exaggerated. "I'm innocent! How could you suspect me after all we've been through together!"

"No, you aren't," said the woman. "You've been hitting banks and stations across the known universe for as long as you're on record. You're guilty of virtually every non-murder crime we've got a law for!"

"So what, it's my word against yours," said Ryoko, voice changing.

"Wanna bet," said the woman, drawing out a device. It shot out lightrays that formed into what resembled a wanted poster. "See this? I've got a complete wanted poster. Meticulously chronicled, and I've got an ID that proves who I am."

"...We uh, we can't read that," said Mark flatly.

"What?" said the woman.

"We're from Earth," said Mark. "That language isn't one that people on Earth speak. For all we know, you could have photoshopped a picture onto random gibberish." He should know, he was familiar with a great many different languages.

"Um, well..." the woman stopped.

"Also, why do the Galaxy Police have authority on Earth, exactly?" asked Mark, deciding to ask as long as his persona was on this line of thought. "I've never even heard of your organization. Do you have some sort of top-secret authorization from the government? One that lets you arrest people?"

"Well, no, not really," admitted the woman.

"Okay, so why should we believe anything you have to say?" asked Mark, wondering what kind of slipshod police force these people were. "I mean, the first experience we had with you was trying to kill us. Well, them."

"I was firing with stun blasts. Neither of you would have been hurt," said Kiyone. "I would have ordered you to stand down, but my communicator's array got damaged in the crash."

"How do you know they wouldn't have been hurt?" asked Mark. "Isn't it possible that Earthling physiology is very different from your own race? That being the case, what assurances do you have that your weaponry wouldn't kill us?"

"Well, I..." the woman shifted. "Look, I didn't even mean to end up on this planet! I was pursuing her, and she decided to go into the space of an underdeveloped planet. That's grounds for pursuit in the legal code.

"Then she opened fire, and we blasted eachother."

"What legal code?" asked Tenchi.

The woman took out the device and made a few adjustments, and the language changed to Japanese. "The Galaxy Police official charter. I'm Detective First Class Kiyone Makibi. Look, I'm not really allowed to tell anyone here about this, so can you please just step aside so-"

"I've had enough of this! Will both of you stop it with the techno-babble!" snarled Ryoko, blowing her persona for the sake of petty frustration.

"Well, I thought you were acting," said Mark, before realizing he was getting too far. He adjusted his glasses.

Ryoko looked at him in surprise, and Mark switched sides to stand behind Katsuhito, putting on a look of fear. "So, you figured me out," her voice was harsh and rough not, and she was smiling. "Well, too bad.

"I had a hangover when I ran into you. Otherwise, a low-level cop like you never would have shot you down. So, stupid, how do you think I should cook you?"

Oh, she was talking to Kiyone now. This wasn't going to go well, was it. "Now hold on, I don't think there is any need for violence-" began Mark.

Ryoko drew what could only be described as a lightsaber of red flame.

Mark shrugged and stepped out from between them. Best not to start a fight just yet. "Well put, go ahead and kill each other.

Kiyone drew her gun and aimed it downrange. "Stay right where you are, Space Pirate Ryoko. Or I will open fire."

"Go right ahead," said Ryoko.

Kiyone fired, and a bolt of yellow energy shot forward. It hit a shield of red, broke right through it, caught Ryoko in the forehead, and floor her instantly. There was a long silence.

"Are there rules on police brutality where you're from?" asked Tenchi.

"Police what?" asked Kiyone.

And then Ryoko stood up, clutching her forehead. The burn on her forehead was healing, and she was looking furious. "What the hell was that?"

"Oh come on, do you really think we don't have weapons that can pierce your shields, Ryoko?" asked Kiyone. "We have the tech to deal with high-level enemies."

"I hope you enjoyed that hit," said Ryoko. "It's the last one you'll make!"

And then the fight started.

Ryoko literally flew into the air and started hurling bolts of red energy. Kiyone moved and dodged with an agility only a trained gymnast could do. While doing so, she fired at Ryoko, who moved here and there. Still, Ryoko seemed to be enjoying the combat, and Kiyone was soon on the backfoot.

"I'll admit, this is a bit harder than I expected," said Ryoko, drawing her blade. "But I wouldn't have it any other way."

Ryoko surged forward all the faster. But as she swooped in, Kiyone drew out what seemed to be a yoyo. Leaping over Ryoko's charge, she sent it forth, and the string was one of energy. It wrapped around Ryoko, trapping her in place.

"I'm not that easy!" said Kiyone.

"...Some sort of energy rope," mused Mark, beginning to write notes in his document. "Well worth documenting."

"Pretty good," said Ryoko, struggling in place. "But not good enough!" Then she raised a hand, and three gems were on her wrist. One of them flared to life, and the ropes around her were knocked back. Mark felt a flash of power, and Kiyone was thrown back.

Then Ryoko surged forward, blade readied. "This fight is mine!"

And then Tenchi got between them, and Ryoko halted her charge suddenly. Doing so nearly caused her to fall over. "Hey, what's the big idea? I was about to win."

"You were about to kill her," said Tenchi.

"No, I was just teasing a bit," said Ryoko. "I can unsummon these things at will."

"Isn't this fight completely pointless?" asked Tenchi flatly.

"What do you mean?" asked Kiyone, standing up.

"Let's say you beat her?" asked Tenchi. "How are you going to get off-world?"

Dead silence fell. Ryoko shrugged.

"I uh..." Kiyone paused. "Look, I've had a truly wretched career so far. I saw a chance to take down one of the most wanted criminals in the world, and I took it."

"Guess you blew it because I am untouchable as well as beautiful," said Ryoko. And she put her hands behind her head and stuck out her ample chest.

"She shot you in the head," noted Mark, finishing his notes.

"What was that?!" said Ryoko.

Quickly adopting his simpering persona, Mark apologized. "Nothing, nevermind."

Then, for some reason, Ryoko got behind Tenchi, phasing through solid matter to do it. She then wrapped her arms around his neck. "Now, my dear Tenchi, I believe I'll need a space to stay. Won't I?"

Mark finished his notes:

"Wonderful,

"I've entered into the domain of a harem anime. And I play the role of a man whose pathetic nature makes the shallow protagonist look strong by comparison. I've had enough of this.

"I'm going to enjoy killing these people when the revolution comes."

It was something to work for, at least.


	36. History Lesson

**Chapter Thirty-Six: History Lessons**

Doran Routhe's office was a nice one.

It had a window scanning over the causeway leading into the UPL's headquarters. There had once been a statue of George III here. But that had been smashed to pieces and melted down. Doran smiled at that particular memory. In its place now stood George Washington, who was finally given the honors he had deserved.

Doran had always held nobles and royals of all kind in contempt, personally. Society ought to be meritocratic. Thus why he was scanning over reports; he was now of possible new recruits. None of these were going to make the cut, he decided and turned the page.

Then the door opened, and Doctor Amaya sat down in front of him. Glancing up to the bespectacled woman, he set his papers down. "Well, Doctor, what is your assessment of the technology?"

"It's magic," said Doctor Amaya, blushing a strand of blonde hair behind her ear.

That was not an answer Doran wanted to hear, so he looked at the man in irritation. "What do you mean it's magic?"

"I mean, it may as well be magic to us," said Amaya. "The gun Mark brought in operates on principles we don't comprehend. We aren't even sure what it fires, let alone how it fires it.

"Of course, these are just preliminary results; more time may allow us to discover the truth. As for the storage cube, we've managed to figure out how to operate it. It seems certain commands operate certain subspaces. However, we are lightyears away from understanding how it works."

"Of course," said Doran, looking back down to his desk. "What about the fragments of the ship Mark brought back."

"Well, they on the surface appeared to be crystals," said Amaya. "However, a microscopic analysis reveals that they are like nothing we've seen before. They almost resemble that of a living being, but... there is a lot of energy in it.

"And all kinds of reactions are happening that we don't understand."

"Fine, keep analyzing and theorizing," said Doran. "Humankind did not discover the laws of the universe overnight. We'll learn the truth eventually."

Then he made a call.

* * *

Mark was walking to school when the phone came up. He answered it and put it to one ear. "Mark," said Captain Route.

"Captain Routhe, how can I help you?" asked Mark, adopting his normal tone.

"You're discovery is of great use to the UPL, we believe we'll be able to reverse engineer the weaponry," said Doran. "For now, however, we have a unique opportunity.

"You said that the two alien women are now staying with the Masaki Household?"

"Yes, that's correct," said Mark, mentally calculating.

"You must infiltrate, longterm," said Doran. "This is an opportunity to learn the true nature of our enemies."

Mark nodded. "...Very well, I shall initiate Operation: Summer Occupation."

"Which is?" asked Doran.

"I will contact the Grandfather and request to work as an assistant to him in working at the shrine," said Mark. "I've already achieved familiarity; it should be fairly simple to get a position."

"And if you cannot?" asked Doran.

"Then I will need to use a failsafe," said Mark. "In the worst-case scenario, I could find occasions to visit on occasion and plant bugs."

"I'd prefer if you avoided that," said Doran with a laugh. "The Japanese government is not enthusiastic about our actions. If we bug their citizens and get caught, we may have problems.

"We have total military superiority, of course. But the League would prefer to avoid any escalation."

"I understand," said Mark, before noticing a group of students by the school eyeing him. No doubt, they thought themselves very tough, and he was obligated to play to their perceptions. If it came to it, he could kill all three quite easily.

For now, however, his combat techniques would have to be used to ensure no permanent injury. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm due to get my lunch money stolen."

Then he hung up as the students crowded around him, making threatening statements. Mark wondered if someone might show up to rescue him? Then he remembered this wasn't that wasn't that kind of story. And even if it was, Mark wouldn't have been the main character.

Getting saved from bullies happened to people with incredible destinies ahead of them. Ordinary people just got beaten to a pulp, unless the hero needed to show how kind and brave he was. And that was generally resolved for the shallow love interest.

So he ended up getting beaten up and having his lunch money stolen. Apparently, they'd wanted to make a show of power over the American.

Mark, for his part, focused on his schoolwork. He was quickly reminded of his persona that all of these people would be shot when the revolution came. For now, he focused on achieving his classes and approached Tenchi after class. "Heading back home?"

"Yeah, I've got fields to tend for summer," said Tenchi. "Growing season and all that."

"Right, um, Tenchi, can I ask you a favor?" asked Mark, remembering his purpose and putting on a meek approach.

"What is it?" asked Tenchi. "Hang on, where'd you get those bruises?"

"I had a run-in with some jerks," said Mark. "Anyway, with the school years winding down, I'm kind of, sort of, in need of a summer job. Do you think you could put in a word with your grandfather at the shrine?"

"Huh, I thought you'd lined up one up?" said Tenchi in surprise.

"Yeah, well um, I sort of got my plans changed at the last minute," said Mark. "I sort of need something to keep busy."

"You sure?" asked Tenchi. "I mean, the stairs aren't exactly easy to get up. And you'd have to go up against them every day."

"I... may have an ulterior motive," admitted Mark, deciding to hide in plain sight.

"Which is?" asked Tenchi, who sounded suspicious.

He probably thought Mark was attracted to one of the alien women. Granted, both were very attractive physically. Far beyond any normal women, Mark had seen, but it simply didn't matter to him. "You have two aliens living in your house."

"I knew this was about the girls," said Tenchi.

"NO!" said Mark, a bit too quickly. So apparently, his persona was attractive to them. "I mean, look, they're aliens. I'd like to learn a bit about alien cultures, and what they do and such. We've just made first contact. I'd be remiss in my responsibilities if I didn't at least try to do some research on the subject."

"Hang on, you haven't told anyone about this, have you?" asked Tenchi, concerned.

Oh yes, god forbid someone make a stir by calling the police. It was only an alien invasion. "Oh come on, do you really think I'd do that to a friend? I haven't told anyone in Japan, let alone the school!" Both statements were completely true.

Tenchi sighed. "...Fine, I'll put in a word with grandpa. But you do know that he's going to work you like a dog, don't you? He doesn't even go easy on me."

"Yeah, I know," said Mark. "I've been working out a lot lately, so I think I can handle it." He'd backed this up with a better display at PE class.

"Sure," said Tenchi, who probably considered himself the straight man in this situation.

Mark decided to humor him as they rode the bus. No one else was on it at the moment, Tenchi seemed to have absurd luck like that. "So, uh, what are those girls like?"

"Irritating," said Tenchi. "Ryoko is always hanging off me like a cloak. And Kiyone seems to have made it her personal mission to hang around until help arrives. She wants to take Ryoko into custody with hero. So hopefully, in a few months, the problem should sort itself out.

"Hey, when we got separated, did you run into Kiyone's ship?"

"Kiyone has a ship?" asked Mark's persona. "I thought she came here in that mecha?"

"Right, sure," said Tenchi, looking up. "Well, I guess that leaves the items that disappeared from it a mystery. We had to spend a full day getting them out, and some were missing."

"They probably got misplaced or something. I know I lose things all the time," said Mark. Continue to put up a front of inferiority; if they know your true nature, they can defend against you.

"Sure, but you're not a Galaxy Police woman," noted Tenchi.

"Actually, about that," said Mark thoughtfully. "That skintight blue jumpsuit doesn't seem practical for the purposes of detective work. It's um, well it seems more designed to um... well she's a very beautiful woman but..."

"I think it's made from the material we haven't developed on Earth yet," said Tenchi.

"Oh, um, right, well..." Mark paused. He wondered if there was some way to get ahold of the fabric. Cutting it directly was not a good idea, too much evidence. It bore further thought.

As they got off the bus stop, they began the long climb up the steps. Mark put on an appearance of exhaustion and hating the steps. Body language and expressions could easily substitute for lack of true exertion. He'd scaled far worse stairs in training.

And then Ryoko came, phasing through one of the tree. In the process, she nearly knocked Mark down the steps as she glomped Tenchi. She put her face near his cheek and breathed into his ear. "Welcome home, Tenchi!"

"Oh, it's you, Ryoko," said Tenchi.

How to approach this? Mark thought his persona ought to introduce himself. "Ms. Ryoko, I'm glad to see you again, um..."

"So, Tenchi, I was thinking of taking a walk in the woods," said Ryoko, ignoring him. "Want to come with me, just the two of us?"

"Ms. Ryoko?" said Mark's persona, feeling a bit annoyed.

"Not right now, Ryoko," said Tenchi. "I have to get my homework done, not to mention handle my chores at work."

"Aw, but those are so boring," said Ryoko.

"Excuse me!" snapped Mark's persona. He had nearly fallen down a set of stairs because of her.

Ryoko looked up as though she'd only just noticed him. Blinking in confusion, she got off Tenchi. "Hmm? Oh, who are you?"

"We met a few days ago," said Mark. His persona felt offended but didn't show it.

"Hmm, I don't remember," said Ryoko.

"Actually, you did meet him Ryoko," said Tenchi. "His name is William Mark; he threw the book at Kiyone."

"Oh right, the egghead," said Ryoko.

"Hey!" said Mark, knowing what his persona would say. "I take offense to that! Being a man of science requires extensive discipline to attain! Words like egghead are degrading, especially considering-"

"Couldn't care less, so Tenchi, please go with me. It'll be fun," said Ryoko.

"For the last time, I can't go anywhere until I get my responsibilities done," said Tenchi. "I'll walk with you later."

"Fine," said Ryoko, before phasing out.

Tenchi sighed. "...As you can tell, Ryoko is a bit of a handful."

"I noticed," said Mark. What kind of space pirate was this person, and why hadn't she been robbing anything at the moment.

They got to Tenchi's house soon enough and opened the door. Entering it, Mark's persona felt a bit uncomfortable in the entry hall. While he did know Tenchi, he had not visited all that often before now. "Um, so should we go meet your grandfather first?"

"I'd prefer to talk to him," said Tenchi. "Wait here, and I'll see if I can get you a meeting. He generally prefers to have people meet him one at a time unless he comes down here first.

"There's some canned tea in the fridge if you want it."

"Right," said Mark.

Mark did not take the canned tea. Instead, he drew out a bottle of water he'd brought from his apartment and drank that instead. Moving into the apartment, he found Kiyone Makibi. She was fiddling with a pink cube, similar to what he'd taken before. She was turning it like one would a Rubik's cube, and Mark sat down.

His persona was almost blushing over how beautiful she was in her white sweater and black pants. "So, um, Ms. Kiyone Makibi, I believe we met earlier?"

She looked up with a start. "Hmm, oh, hello. Yes, we did, William Mark, right?"

"Yes, that's me," said Mark. "I'm glad someone remembered my name around here."

"I'm guessing Ryoko forgot it," said Kiyone.

"You guessed correctly," said Mark. "So, what are you doing?"

"I'm trying to set up a distress beacon," said Kiyone. "When you turn this cube in the right way, it sends out a signal. It should be picked up by any vessels coming near here; they'll help me put Ryoko in jail for good."

"Won't that get picked up by the government?" asked Mark, who didn't think much of her security measures. Then again, he didn't think much of Ryoko as a criminal, so it balanced out. "I mean, I don't mean to brag, but we've got some pretty good technology here."

"I doubt it," said Kiyone. "That you could pick it up, I mean. It operates on principles nobody on this planet would be able to figure out."

"And what makes you so sure?" asked Mark.

"...Nevermind," said Kiyone after a moment. "So, you're from the continent of Britannia?"

"America now, actually," said Mark. "Britannian culture has basically ceased to exist, with all the monuments destroyed. As far as the Washington Party is concerned, the American revolution succeeded. It just took a couple of centuries of nonstop world war.

"I guess we have killed the whole Royal Family now, so may they're right."

Kiyone stared. "You killed your own Royal Family?"

"Yeah, after the World War, the average person was more or less sick of nobility and royals entirely," said Mark. "The Washington Party came to power and broke up the old empire. Instead, they set up a system of democratic Republics unified under a common high council. After they purged the nobles trying to turn back the clock.

"That's what happens when you get billions of people killed for nothing, I guess."

Kiyone stared. "...Billions? You're exaggerating, right?"

"Well, not in terms of direct casualties," said Mark. "But when you account for the purges, the diseases, the famines the number gets pretty high, especially in the later stages when the WMD's came into things. China was a wasteland until recently. And we aren't so much working on ecological recovery as terraforming."

"But..." Kiyone paused. "If that's true... how long was this war?"

"Eh, twenty years maybe," said Mark. "Though it's a debate whether it was all one big war or a lot of smaller ones."

"...You killed more people in twenty years than have died in all the wars in Juraian history combined?" asked Kiyone. "How is there even a population here?"

"Well, um, Earth has a lot of people on it, I guess," said Mark. Apparently, in outer space, wars were fought with far fewer casualties. "But I don't know your history. Actually, that's sort of what I wanted to talk to you about. What sort of wars are fought in outer space?"

"Well, the most recent one would be the Jurai Tal'Darim war," said Kiyone. "That lasted about fifty years and had a few thousand casualties on both sides. It was the bloodiest war ever fought by the Jurai Royal Family. Or so I thought."

"What does that mean?" asked Mark. But he already suspected he knew the answer. The Juraians bloodlines had first been isolated during the purges. They'd found that the nobility had traces of DNA unlike anything human.

It presented a threat Mark meant to answer.

"Nevermind, um, I'd heard a bit about Earth before now," said Kiyone. "but I never realized things had gotten so gruesome."

"So have aliens come to earth before?" asked Mark.

"Well, Emperor Azusa picked up his first wife here," said Kiyone.

"Really?" asked Mark, remembering the theories. "How'd that happen?"

"Well, after the Jurai Tal'Darim war Emperor Nesshin was seriously injured," said Kiyone. "He'd fought in single combat with the Tal'Darim leader, Mal'lash and neither had come out of it well.

"The injuries pained him for years afterward. Eventually, he died of complications when he used too much of the Jurai power.

"With no clear successor, Lady Seto went to find Nesshin's lost daughter."

"Lady Seto?" asked Mark.

"The most powerful woman on Jurai," said Kiyone. "I uh... met her daughter once. Anyway, Nesshin's daughter had run off with some guy of common blood earlier. So he'd wanted nothing more to do with her. As it turned out, though, she'd had a son.

"Naturally, Seto immediately took the boy and had Nesshin adopt him. Continuing the Jurai bloodline is important. He was Azusa, our current Emperor.

"But, well, he made a run for it at one point and ended up here on Earth. I don't know the details, but he ended up touching down in China. Eventually, he came back with a wife and refused to become Emperor unless he was allowed to marry her."

"I think I've heard this story, it's an old Chinese folktale," said Mark. He made sure his persona adopting a fascinated manner. "The story of Princess Kaguya. Maybe the names got switched around later."

"It's possible, I guess," said Kiyone. "That was thousands of years ago.

"Anyway, that sort of opened the door on visits to Earth. By members of the Jurai Royal Family, at least. I gather that there have been several other visits, one during what you called the Dark Ages. Ever hear about Camelot?"

Mark had been raised there. "Yes, I have."

"Well, that got started when a member of the Jurai Royal Family crash-landed in a lake in Britain," said Kiyone. "He was stranded there for a while and apparently helped found a kingdom. I think he called himself Merlin while he was there."

Mark made a mental note to burn his books on King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table. It was a shame; they'd been good stories.

"Though there's a hard clad rule not to show ourselves to people openly now," said Kiyone.

Mark paused. "So, is there some kind of official foreign policy on Earth?"

"Hmm?" asked Kiyone.

"Well, I'm not going to have to worry about an alien invasion or anything?" asked Mark. He'd decided that Kiyone represented a layman's perspective on Jurai.

"You don't have to worry, Earth is designated an underdeveloped planet," said Kiyone. "There are ironclad rules against that kind of thing."

"You mean a world that has not yet reached a sufficient level of technological progress?" guessed Mark.

"Something like that, I guess," said Kiyone, with the tone of one being evasive.

"What do you mean by 'something like that.'" asked Mark, liking this less by the minute.

"Well, um, Earth isn't as advanced as most worlds that have been inhabited," said Kiyone, looking away. "Underdeveloped doesn't mean that you haven't reached a certain level of development. It means um... you are behind, though it's a pretty arbitrary concept."

"How far are we behind?" asked Mark.

Kiyone shifted. "Well, a lot.

"All the other homeworlds develop to the space age within the first century. It's um..."

"What?" said Mark, losing his persona for a moment. "How can we possibly be that far behind?!"

Kiyone paused. "Well, it isn't really your fault.

"See, well, from what I read in the history of life on Earth developed entirely independent of any deity. All species we know of in the universe were created by design. But earthlings were created without divine intervention.

"When a deity creates a species, they tune them to have advantages and disadvantages."

Mark decided that if he went any further with this subject, he'd show his true colors. "...Why don't we change the subject?

"So, is this Queen Funaho still alive?"

"Yes, actually," said Kiyone. "She had a son with Azusa who became the greatest warrior in Jurai's history, named Yosho. Though he disappeared a long time ago, and we're not sure where he is.

"The Jurai Court was apparently hostile to her, at first, but she's generally accepted now."

"She must be pretty old by now, then," mused Mark.

"Well, no, probably not," admitted Kiyone. "Jurai lengthened here years, so now she lives the normal amount."

"What's the normal amount in outer space?" asked Mark, trying to maintain his persona.

Kiyone paused. "...As long as you aren't killed or die some other way, forever. Nesshin ruled for thousands of years, and he was considered to have a very short reign.

"Though very eventful."

Mark quickly looked for ways to change the subject. All of this needed to be processed without emotional fixation. "If you don't mind me asking, Ms. Kiyone, um how... um..."

"Twenty-four, actually," said Kiyone. "I'm pretty darn young for my position in the GP."

"What position in that?" asked Mark.

"Erm... detective first class," said Kiyone. "I was hoping to be at a higher rank by now, but, um... various reasons interfered."

At that moment, Tenchi came back. "Mark, good news."

"Yes?" said Mark, checking his persona.

"Grandpa wants to meet with you," said Tenchi. "But I think he's willing to give you the job. I just hope you know what you're getting into."

"Right, thanks," said Mark. "I've got to go, Kiyone."

"No problem," said Kiyone.

As Mark made his way up the steps once more to the shrine, he contemplated what he had learned. It was possible that Kiyone Makibi was lying. But her reluctance to say as much seemed to indicate otherwise. What if she was telling the truth?

Mankind had begun as mere apes, no as mere primordial soup.

But they developed. They arose from microscopic beginnings and grew into the form of apes, which in turn became humans. These humans were hairless, without claws or fine senses. They'd been surrounded by far worse predators. And yet they survived.

They fought and struggled for every moment. Their lives were as mayflies, yet they recorded their history to pass down. They built tools from nothing, made bronze and iron. Chariots and horses gave way to automobiles.

In all this, there had been many setbacks. War, terror, disease, and death stalked every street, and yet from this came medicine. Endless lives had been given to the pursuit of science, learning the nature of the world. From philosophers to scientists, to theologians, mankind had fought to understand the universe. And through understanding, they were even now gradually gaining mastery.

All for nothing, if his sources so far were accurate.

Were they no more than an accident? Stunted and deformed idiots to be regarded with pity by a perfect universe? Creatures whose only hope is that they might one day aspire to be stupid servants to a beautiful elite?

To hell with that.

Humanity had been helpless and outmatched before the sabretooth and mammoth. They had outlived them.

And they would outlive Jurai.


End file.
